Hardin Capital Partners LLC Takes Position in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Hardin Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 19,356 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,940,000. Duke Energy makes up about 1.3% of Hardin Capital Partners LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 10th biggest holding.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of DUK. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC bought a new position in Duke Energy in the first quarter valued at about $25,000. Private Wealth Management Group LLC bought a new stake in Duke Energy during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC increased its position in Duke Energy by 69.6% in the 2nd quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 290 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 119 shares during the period. Riverview Trust Co bought a new position in shares of Duke Energy during the first quarter valued at $30,000. Finally, Olistico Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of Duke Energy in the second quarter worth $30,000. Institutional investors own 65.31% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Louis E. Renjel sold 540 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $113.64, for a total transaction of $61,365.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 19,884 shares in the company, valued at $2,259,617.76. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have commented on DUK shares. Evercore ISI lifted their target price on Duke Energy from $108.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Bank of America raised their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $116.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, August 29th. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $99.00 to $114.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, August 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Duke Energy from $111.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, August 12th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Duke Energy from $110.00 to $122.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Duke Energy has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $113.92.

Duke Energy Price Performance

DUK stock opened at $115.97 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.56, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a current ratio of 0.81. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $110.86 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $102.77. The company has a market capitalization of $89.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.19 and a beta of 0.47. Duke Energy Co. has a 52-week low of $83.06 and a 52-week high of $118.18.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The utilities provider reported $1.18 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.02 by $0.16. Duke Energy had a return on equity of 9.71% and a net margin of 14.29%. The business had revenue of $7.17 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.84 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.91 EPS. Duke Energy’s quarterly revenue was up 9.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that Duke Energy Co. will post 5.97 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 16th will be given a dividend of $1.045 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 16th. This represents a $4.18 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.60%. This is a boost from Duke Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.03. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 105.03%.

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.