Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. Grows Position in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 6.1% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 40,354 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,312 shares during the period. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $3,621,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of DUK. Norwood Financial Corp bought a new stake in Duke Energy in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $27,000. Impact Partnership Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in Duke Energy during the second quarter valued at $28,000. Horizon Bancorp Inc. IN lifted its position in Duke Energy by 200.0% during the second quarter. Horizon Bancorp Inc. IN now owns 312 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 208 shares during the last quarter. Chilton Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Duke Energy in the 1st quarter worth $28,000. Finally, Fairfield Bush & CO. bought a new stake in shares of Duke Energy in the 1st quarter worth about $40,000. 63.68% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Duke Energy Stock Down 0.2 %

NYSE DUK traded down $0.17 on Friday, reaching $90.01. 3,340,656 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,072,019. Duke Energy Co. has a 12 month low of $83.06 and a 12 month high of $106.43. The company has a market cap of $69.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 57.33, a PEG ratio of 2.63 and a beta of 0.45. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $89.61 and a 200-day moving average price of $91.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.43, a quick ratio of 0.52 and a current ratio of 0.76.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 2nd. The utilities provider reported $1.94 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.92 by $0.02. Duke Energy had a net margin of 4.47% and a return on equity of 8.24%. The company had revenue of $7.99 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.13 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.78 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts forecast that Duke Energy Co. will post 5.59 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 18th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 17th will be given a dividend of $1.025 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 16th. This represents a $4.10 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.56%. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 261.15%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently commented on the company. Barclays lifted their price target on Duke Energy from $96.00 to $97.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 14th. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $105.00 to $98.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, August 9th. KeyCorp reduced their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $109.00 to $96.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 5th. Mizuho dropped their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $92.00 to $91.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, August 25th. Finally, Guggenheim decreased their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $102.00 to $93.00 in a research note on Monday, October 9th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $98.36.

Duke Energy Company 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; and uses coal, hydroelectric, natural gas, oil, solar and wind sources, renewables, and nuclear fuel to generate electricity.