Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) Shares Sold by HBK Sorce Advisory LLC

HBK Sorce Advisory LLC reduced its holdings in shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 4.2% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 10,678 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 463 shares during the quarter. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $1,070,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Duke Energy during the 1st quarter worth about $25,000. Private Wealth Management Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Duke Energy during the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC lifted its holdings in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 119 shares during the last quarter. Riverview Trust Co purchased a new stake in shares of Duke Energy in the 1st quarter valued at about $30,000. Finally, Olistico Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Duke Energy in the 2nd quarter valued at about $30,000. 65.31% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Duke Energy Stock Performance

DUK opened at $117.31 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $90.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.47, a P/E/G ratio of 3.19 and a beta of 0.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.56, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.53. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $111.20 and its 200 day simple moving average is $102.95. Duke Energy Co. has a 1-year low of $83.06 and a 1-year high of $118.18.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The utilities provider reported $1.18 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.02 by $0.16. The business had revenue of $7.17 billion for 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%. The company’s revenue was up 9.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.91 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Duke Energy Co. will post 5.97 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 16th will be issued a dividend of $1.045 per share. This represents a $4.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.56%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 16th. This is a boost from Duke Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.03. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio is 105.03%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $135.00 target price on shares of Duke Energy in a report on Thursday, August 29th. KeyCorp boosted their target price on Duke Energy from $114.00 to $117.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 14th. Barclays boosted their target price on Duke Energy from $99.00 to $102.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 11th. Evercore ISI boosted their target price on Duke Energy from $108.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Finally, Scotiabank upped their price objective on Duke Energy from $104.00 to $113.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 20th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $113.92.

Insider Buying and Selling at Duke Energy

In other Duke Energy news, EVP Louis E. Renjel sold 540 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $113.64, for a total transaction of $61,365.60. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 19,884 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,259,617.76. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

About Duke Energy

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.