Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. Has $18.67 Million Position in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 17.5% in the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 186,229 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 27,703 shares during the quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $18,666,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in DUK. Thoroughbred Financial Services LLC bought a new position in shares of Duke Energy during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $580,000. Parallel Advisors LLC raised its stake in Duke Energy by 3.7% during the second quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 7,006 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $702,000 after acquiring an additional 247 shares in the last quarter. Dai ichi Life Insurance Company Ltd lifted its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 3.0% during the second quarter. Dai ichi Life Insurance Company Ltd now owns 185,243 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $18,567,000 after acquiring an additional 5,382 shares during the period. Westover Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Duke Energy in the 2nd quarter valued at $200,000. Finally, 1ST Source Bank grew its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 5.3% in the 2nd quarter. 1ST Source Bank now owns 11,181 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,121,000 after purchasing an additional 561 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 65.31% of the company’s stock.

Duke Energy Price Performance

Shares of DUK stock opened at $117.31 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $90.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.47, a PEG ratio of 3.19 and a beta of 0.47. Duke Energy Co. has a 12 month low of $83.06 and a 12 month high of $118.18. The company has a quick ratio of 0.53, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.56. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $111.20 and a 200 day moving average price of $102.95.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The utilities provider reported $1.18 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.02 by $0.16. Duke Energy had a net margin of 14.29% and a return on equity of 9.71%. The company had revenue of $7.17 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.84 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.91 EPS. Duke Energy’s revenue was up 9.0% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts expect that Duke Energy Co. will post 5.97 EPS 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 16th. This represents a $4.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.56%. This is an increase from Duke Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.03. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio is 105.03%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

DUK has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $135.00 price target on shares of Duke Energy in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. Barclays boosted their target price on Duke Energy from $99.00 to $102.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 11th. Evercore ISI raised their price target on Duke Energy from $108.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Duke Energy from $110.00 to $122.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on Duke Energy from $102.00 to $113.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, August 12th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $113.92.

Insider Transactions at Duke Energy

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

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.