Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) Stake Lessened by FDx Advisors Inc.

FDx Advisors Inc. decreased its position in shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 41.7% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 4,572 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 3,276 shares during the period. FDx Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $442,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Duke Energy in the 1st quarter worth approximately $25,000. Altshuler Shaham Ltd bought a new position in shares of Duke Energy in the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. Private Wealth Management Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Duke Energy during the 4th quarter worth $26,000. Riverview Trust Co acquired a new position in shares of Duke Energy in the 1st quarter worth $30,000. Finally, Pacific Capital Wealth Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Duke Energy during the fourth quarter worth $31,000. 65.31% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Duke Energy

In other news, CEO Lynn J. Good sold 15,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $103.30, for a total transaction of $1,549,500.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 437,464 shares in the company, valued at $45,190,031.20. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, Director E Marie Mckee sold 1,695 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $102.31, for a total value of $173,415.45. Following the sale, the director now owns 4 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $409.24. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Lynn J. Good sold 15,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $103.30, for a total value of $1,549,500.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 437,464 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $45,190,031.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 26,695 shares of company stock valued at $2,750,815 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.14% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

DUK has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. 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. Bank of America upped their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $96.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Scotiabank cut their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $101.00 to $94.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 22nd. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on Duke Energy from $103.00 to $98.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, June 24th. Finally, Mizuho upped their price target on Duke Energy from $89.00 to $99.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, April 5th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Duke Energy presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $102.42.

Duke Energy Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE DUK traded up $1.78 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $104.61. 1,601,068 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,903,031. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.54, a current ratio of 0.78 and a quick ratio of 0.50. The company’s 50 day moving average is $101.67 and its 200 day moving average is $97.64. The firm has a market capitalization of $80.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.31, a P/E/G ratio of 2.76 and a beta of 0.45. Duke Energy Co. has a one year low of $83.06 and a one year high of $104.89.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 7th. The utilities provider reported $1.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.39 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $7.67 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.31 billion. Duke Energy had a net margin of 10.78% and a return on equity of 9.25%. Duke Energy’s quarterly revenue was up 5.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.20 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Duke Energy Co. will post 5.97 EPS for the current year.

Duke Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 17th. Investors of record on Friday, May 17th were paid a dividend of $1.025 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 16th. This represents a $4.10 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.92%. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio is 103.02%.

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.