Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) Shares Sold by American International Group Inc.

American International Group Inc. cut its stake in shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 0.2% in the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 195,280 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 482 shares during the period. American International Group Inc.’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $18,886,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Town & Country Bank & Trust CO dba First Bankers Trust CO boosted its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 3.3% during the first quarter. Town & Country Bank & Trust CO dba First Bankers Trust CO now owns 3,390 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $328,000 after acquiring an additional 109 shares during the last quarter. Breakwater Capital Group raised its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 3.9% during the 1st quarter. Breakwater Capital Group now owns 2,912 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $282,000 after buying an additional 109 shares during the period. First Command Advisory Services Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. First Command Advisory Services Inc. now owns 7,949 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $771,000 after buying an additional 110 shares during the period. Venturi Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 9.0% during the 1st quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,380 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $133,000 after buying an additional 114 shares during the period. Finally, Verum Partners LLC increased its holdings in Duke Energy by 3.1% during the 4th quarter. Verum Partners LLC now owns 3,831 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $372,000 after purchasing an additional 115 shares during the last quarter. 65.31% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Duke Energy

In other news, CEO Lynn J. Good sold 15,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 437,464 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $45,190,031.20. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In other news, CEO Lynn J. Good sold 15,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 437,464 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $45,190,031.20. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Julia S. Janson sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $102.79, for a total value of $1,027,900.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 68,657 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,057,253.03. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 26,695 shares of company stock worth $2,750,815 in the last ninety days. 0.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Duke Energy Trading Up 1.4 %

DUK traded up $1.49 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $108.61. The stock had a trading volume of 2,875,555 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,898,316. The stock has a market capitalization of $83.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.29, a P/E/G ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 0.45. Duke Energy Co. has a 52 week low of $83.06 and a 52 week high of $108.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.54, a quick ratio of 0.50 and a current ratio of 0.78. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $102.62 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $98.28.

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

Duke Energy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 16th will be paid a dividend of $1.045 per share. This is an increase from Duke Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.03. This represents a $4.18 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.85%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 16th. Duke Energy’s payout ratio is currently 103.02%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on Duke Energy from $103.00 to $98.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, June 24th. Mizuho boosted their price objective on Duke Energy from $89.00 to $99.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, April 5th. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price target on Duke Energy from $110.00 to $109.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 11th. Barclays boosted their price objective on Duke Energy from $99.00 to $102.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 11th. Finally, Bank of America boosted their price objective on Duke Energy from $96.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. Six investment 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 currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $102.58.

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.