First Horizon Advisors Inc. Buys 2,213 Shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

First Horizon Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 5.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 46,578 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,213 shares during the period. First Horizon Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $5,018,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. KMG Fiduciary Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 5.5% during the 4th quarter. KMG Fiduciary Partners LLC now owns 52,097 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $5,613,000 after acquiring an additional 2,705 shares during the period. Pines Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Duke Energy during the fourth quarter worth about $1,032,000. CCM Investment Advisers LLC increased its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 24.3% in the fourth quarter. CCM Investment Advisers LLC now owns 83,610 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $9,008,000 after purchasing an additional 16,356 shares in the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp raised its position in shares of Duke Energy by 3.2% in the fourth quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 296,463 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $31,941,000 after purchasing an additional 9,070 shares during the period. Finally, Corundum Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Duke Energy during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $1,566,000. 65.31% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on DUK shares. Scotiabank lifted their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $113.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on Duke Energy from $129.00 to $132.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on Duke Energy from $119.00 to $124.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on Duke Energy from $122.00 to $118.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 22nd. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Duke Energy presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $121.62.

Duke Energy Stock Up 2.1 %

DUK stock opened at $115.58 on Monday. Duke Energy Co. has a 1-year low of $90.09 and a 1-year high of $121.25. The stock has a market cap of $89.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.50. The company has a current ratio of 0.67, a quick ratio of 0.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.52. The company’s 50 day moving average is $110.10 and its 200 day moving average is $113.00.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The utilities provider reported $1.66 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.61 by $0.05. Duke Energy had a net margin of 14.90% and a return on equity of 9.50%. Sell-side analysts predict that Duke Energy Co. will post 6.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be issued a $1.045 dividend. This represents a $4.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.62%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. Duke Energy’s payout ratio is currently 73.20%.

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.