First Fiduciary Investment Counsel Inc. trimmed its stake in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK – Get Rating) by 0.5% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 60,623 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 288 shares during the period. First Fiduciary Investment Counsel Inc.'s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $6,499,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of DUK. Gotham Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Duke Energy by 57.1% during the fourth quarter. Gotham Asset Management LLC now owns 5,189 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $544,000 after purchasing an additional 1,886 shares in the last quarter. Bridgewater Associates LP bought a new position in shares of Duke Energy in the 4th quarter worth about $1,426,000. Eaton Vance Management lifted its position in Duke Energy by 76.7% during the 4th quarter. Eaton Vance Management now owns 505,280 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $51,712,000 after acquiring an additional 219,332 shares during the period. Commerce Bank boosted its stake in Duke Energy by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Commerce Bank now owns 420,912 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $44,154,000 after acquiring an additional 2,109 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Guggenheim Capital LLC grew its holdings in Duke Energy by 8.1% in the fourth quarter. Guggenheim Capital LLC now owns 200,039 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $20,984,000 after purchasing an additional 14,943 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 63.76% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

DUK has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on Duke Energy from $123.00 to $121.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, September 22nd. UBS Group cut shares of Duke Energy from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $122.00 to $112.00 in a report on Thursday, June 30th. Barclays lowered their price objective on Duke Energy from $119.00 to $110.00 in a research report on Monday, July 18th. KeyCorp reduced their target price on Duke Energy from $121.00 to $116.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, July 19th. Finally, Credit Suisse Group downgraded Duke Energy from an "outperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and upped their price target for the company from $112.00 to $114.00 in a report on Friday, August 5th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $112.90.

Duke Energy Stock Performance

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK – Get Rating) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 4th. The utilities provider reported $1.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.10 by $0.04. Duke Energy had a return on equity of 8.42% and a net margin of 14.50%. The business had revenue of $6.69 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.79 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.15 EPS. Duke Energy's revenue for the quarter was up 16.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts forecast that Duke Energy Co. will post 5.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 12th were given a dividend of $1.005 per share. This represents a $4.02 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.06%. This is an increase from Duke Energy's previous quarterly dividend of $0.99. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, August 11th. Duke Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 81.38%.

Insider Activity

In other Duke Energy news, CFO Steven K. Young sold 415 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $107.75, for a total value of $44,716.25. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 114,072 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,291,258. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, EVP Kodwo Ghartey-Tagoe sold 4,700 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $109.67, for a total transaction of $515,449.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 14,002 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,535,599.34. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Steven K. Young sold 415 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $107.75, for a total value of $44,716.25. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 114,072 shares in the company, valued at $12,291,258. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 7,819 shares of company stock valued at $856,533. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Duke Energy Profile

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Duke Energy Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, operates as an energy company in the United States. It operates through three segments: Electric Utilities and Infrastructure, Gas Utilities and Infrastructure, and Commercial Renewables. The Electric Utilities and Infrastructure segment generates, transmits, distributes, and sells electricity in the Carolinas, Florida, and the Midwest; and uses coal, hydroelectric, natural gas, oil, renewable generation, and nuclear fuel to generate electricity.

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