Anchor Investment Management LLC Grows Position in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Anchor Investment Management LLC increased its position in shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 1.6% during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 81,252 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 1,252 shares during the period. Duke Energy comprises about 0.9% of Anchor Investment Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 25th biggest position. Anchor Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $9,368,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in DUK. PBMares Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Duke Energy by 1.8% in the third quarter. PBMares Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,886 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $563,000 after purchasing an additional 86 shares during the last quarter. Pinnacle West Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in Duke Energy by 2.1% during the second quarter. Pinnacle West Asset Management Inc. now owns 4,425 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $444,000 after purchasing an additional 90 shares in the last quarter. Castleview Partners LLC raised its holdings in Duke Energy by 4.9% during the third quarter. Castleview Partners LLC now owns 1,944 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $224,000 after purchasing an additional 90 shares in the last quarter. Kanawha Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Duke Energy by 1.4% during the third 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 in the last quarter. Finally, Baron Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in Duke Energy by 3.5% during the third quarter. Baron Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,730 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $315,000 after purchasing an additional 92 shares in the last quarter. 65.31% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have weighed in on DUK shares. Scotiabank raised their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $104.00 to $113.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 20th. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $120.00 to $126.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 18th. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on shares of 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. Mizuho upgraded shares of Duke Energy from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $116.00 to $121.00 in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and set a $135.00 target price on shares of Duke Energy in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $121.69.

Duke Energy Price Performance

Shares of NYSE DUK opened at $109.60 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $84.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.15, a PEG ratio of 2.97 and a beta of 0.47. Duke Energy Co. has a one year low of $90.09 and a one year high of $121.25. The company’s fifty day moving average is $114.62 and its two-hundred day moving average is $110.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.55, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a current ratio of 0.70.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The utilities provider reported $1.62 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.73 by ($0.11). The company had revenue of $8.16 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.06 billion. Duke Energy had a return on equity of 9.34% and a net margin of 14.31%. Duke Energy’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.94 earnings per share. Analysts forecast that Duke Energy Co. will post 5.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be paid a dividend of $1.045 per share. This represents a $4.18 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.81%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 15th. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 76.84%.

Duke Energy Profile

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.