Shoker Investment Counsel Inc. Acquires 377 Shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Shoker Investment Counsel Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 1.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 23,918 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 377 shares during the quarter. Shoker Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $2,577,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in DUK. Kanawha Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Duke Energy by 1.4% in the 3rd quarter. Kanawha Capital Management LLC now owns 6,591 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $760,000 after purchasing an additional 92 shares during the period. Baron Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in Duke Energy by 3.5% in the third quarter. Baron Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,730 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $315,000 after buying an additional 92 shares during the period. Private Wealth Partners LLC boosted its position in Duke Energy by 0.6% during the 3rd quarter. Private Wealth Partners LLC now owns 15,982 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,843,000 after acquiring an additional 93 shares in the last quarter. Clear Creek Financial Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 4.0% during the 3rd quarter. Clear Creek Financial Management LLC now owns 2,416 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $279,000 after acquiring an additional 93 shares during the period. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB raised its position in shares of Duke Energy by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 31,353 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $3,378,000 after acquiring an additional 93 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.31% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

DUK has been the topic of several research reports. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on Duke Energy from $122.00 to $118.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. Scotiabank increased their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $113.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $119.00 to $124.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $129.00 to $132.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Duke Energy has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $121.62.

Duke Energy Stock Performance

DUK stock opened at $116.03 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $110.85 and its 200 day simple moving average is $113.10. The company has a current ratio of 0.67, a quick ratio of 0.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.52. Duke Energy Co. has a 12-month low of $90.09 and a 12-month high of $121.25. The stock has a market capitalization of $89.63 billion, a PE ratio of 20.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.50.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The utilities provider reported $1.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.61 by $0.05. Duke Energy had a return on equity of 9.50% and a net margin of 14.90%. As a group, research analysts forecast that Duke Energy Co. will post 6.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be paid a $1.045 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $4.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.60%. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 73.20%.

About Duke Energy

Duke Energy Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, operates as an energy company in the United States. It operates through two segments: Electric Utilities and Infrastructure (EU&I), and Gas Utilities and Infrastructure (GU&I). The EU&I segment generates, transmits, distributes, and sells electricity in the Carolinas, Florida, and the Midwest.