Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC Grows Stock Position in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its stake in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 7.2% during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 466,368 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 31,211 shares during the quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC owned approximately 0.06% of Duke Energy worth $46,744,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC purchased a new position in Duke Energy in the first quarter valued at $25,000. Altshuler Shaham Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Duke Energy in the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Private Wealth Management Group LLC purchased a new position in Duke Energy during the fourth quarter worth approximately $26,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC grew its holdings in Duke Energy by 69.6% in the second quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 290 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 119 shares during the period. Finally, Riverview Trust Co purchased a new stake in shares of Duke Energy in the first quarter valued at approximately $30,000. 65.31% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

DUK has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $114.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. Barclays lifted their price target on Duke Energy from $99.00 to $102.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 11th. Scotiabank increased their price objective on Duke Energy from $94.00 to $104.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $110.00 to $122.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. Finally, KeyCorp upped their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $112.00 to $114.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $108.69.

Duke Energy Trading Up 0.2 %

Shares of Duke Energy stock traded up $0.27 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $113.99. The stock had a trading volume of 496,037 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,951,432. The firm has a market cap of $87.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.09 and a beta of 0.45. The company has a quick ratio of 0.50, a current ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.54. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $105.03 and a two-hundred day moving average of $99.71. Duke Energy Co. has a 12-month low of $83.06 and a 12-month high of $116.67.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last posted its earnings results 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 company 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 9.25% and a net margin of 10.78%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 9.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.91 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that Duke Energy Co. will post 5.97 earnings per share for the current year.

Duke Energy Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 16th will be paid a $1.045 dividend. This represents a $4.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.67%. This is an increase from Duke Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.03. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 16th. Duke Energy’s payout ratio is 105.03%.

Insider Transactions at Duke Energy

In other Duke Energy news, EVP Louis E. Renjel sold 540 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 owns 19,884 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,259,617.76. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

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.