QRG Capital Management Inc. Grows Position in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

QRG Capital Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 15.8% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 132,562 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 18,123 shares during the quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $15,284,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Fortitude Family Office LLC grew its stake in Duke Energy by 69.6% during the 2nd quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 290 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 119 shares during the last quarter. Olistico Wealth LLC purchased a new position in Duke Energy during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $30,000. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Duke Energy in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Cedar Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 101.2% in the 1st quarter. Cedar Wealth Management LLC now owns 336 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 169 shares during the last quarter. Finally, EntryPoint Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Duke Energy in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.31% of the company’s stock.

Duke Energy Stock Performance

Shares of DUK stock opened at $112.52 on Tuesday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $115.83 and a 200 day moving average price of $108.46. The stock has a market cap of $86.89 billion, a PE ratio of 20.72, a P/E/G ratio of 3.15 and a beta of 0.47. Duke Energy Co. has a 1 year low of $86.61 and a 1 year high of $121.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.56, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a current ratio of 0.81.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 6th. The utilities provider reported $1.18 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.02 by $0.16. The firm had revenue of $7.17 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.84 billion. Duke Energy had a return on equity of 9.71% and a net margin of 14.29%. Duke Energy’s revenue was up 9.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.91 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that Duke Energy Co. will post 5.98 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Friday, November 15th will be issued a dividend of $1.045 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 15th. This represents a $4.18 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.71%. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 76.98%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Louis E. Renjel sold 540 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $113.64, for a total value of $61,365.60. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 19,884 shares in the company, valued at $2,259,617.76. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have weighed in on DUK shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Duke Energy from $111.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, August 12th. Evercore ISI lifted their target price on Duke Energy from $108.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. KeyCorp downgraded Duke Energy from an “overweight” rating to a “sector weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Duke Energy from $110.00 to $122.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. Finally, Barclays lifted their target price on Duke Energy from $102.00 to $118.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Duke Energy presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $121.85.

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.