City Holding Co. Has $1.75 Million Stock Position in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

City Holding Co. lessened its holdings in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 13.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 16,284 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 2,578 shares during the period. City Holding Co.’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $1,754,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of DUK. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Duke Energy during the third quarter valued at about $29,000. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC acquired a new stake in Duke Energy during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $30,000. Winch Advisory Services LLC grew its holdings in Duke Energy by 332.9% during the 4th quarter. Winch Advisory Services LLC now owns 316 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 243 shares during the last quarter. Reston Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Duke Energy during the third quarter valued at $38,000. Finally, Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 100.0% during the third quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC now owns 334 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 167 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.31% of the company’s stock.

Duke Energy Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:DUK opened at $109.34 on Monday. Duke Energy Co. has a twelve month low of $90.09 and a twelve month high of $121.25. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $110.47 and its 200-day moving average is $111.97. The company has a quick ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 0.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.55. The firm has a market capitalization of $84.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.10, a PEG ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 0.49.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 7th. The utilities provider reported $1.62 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.73 by ($0.11). Duke Energy had a net margin of 14.31% and a return on equity of 9.34%. The business had revenue of $8.16 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.06 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.94 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts forecast that Duke Energy Co. will post 5.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th will be given a dividend of $1.045 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $4.18 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.82%. Duke Energy’s payout ratio is 76.84%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently issued reports on DUK. KeyCorp lowered Duke Energy from an “overweight” rating to a “sector weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Barclays upped their target price on Duke Energy from $102.00 to $118.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. Scotiabank boosted 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 report on Thursday, December 12th. Mizuho upgraded shares of Duke Energy from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $116.00 to $121.00 in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. Finally, Morgan Stanley dropped 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 report on Friday, November 22nd. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $122.23.

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.