Ameritas Advisory Services LLC Reduces Holdings in Duke Energy Corporation $DUK

Ameritas Advisory Services LLC trimmed its stake in Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK) by 14.1% during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 16,667 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 2,732 shares during the period. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $1,967,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in Duke Energy by 2.3% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 74,562,000 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $9,094,327,000 after purchasing an additional 1,676,061 shares during the period. GQG Partners LLC boosted its stake in Duke Energy by 17,880.0% during the 1st quarter. GQG Partners LLC now owns 10,249,508 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,250,133,000 after purchasing an additional 10,192,503 shares during the period. Royal Bank of Canada boosted its stake in Duke Energy by 4.9% during the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 8,921,517 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,088,158,000 after purchasing an additional 418,014 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in Duke Energy by 1.1% during the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 8,656,244 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,055,087,000 after purchasing an additional 93,699 shares during the period. Finally, Northern Trust Corp boosted its stake in Duke Energy by 1.9% during the 1st quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 8,153,615 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $994,496,000 after purchasing an additional 152,542 shares during the period. 65.31% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Duke Energy Stock Up 1.7%

Shares of NYSE DUK opened at $123.58 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.42, a current ratio of 0.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.55. Duke Energy Corporation has a 52 week low of $105.20 and a 52 week high of $127.85. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $122.58 and a 200 day moving average price of $119.61. The stock has a market capitalization of $96.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 0.44.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 5th. The utilities provider reported $1.25 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.29 by ($0.04). Duke Energy had a net margin of 15.51% and a return on equity of 9.85%. The company had revenue of $7.51 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.07 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.18 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.7% on a year-over-year basis. Duke Energy has set its FY 2025 guidance at 6.170-6.420 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Duke Energy Corporation will post 6.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 16th. Investors of record on Friday, August 15th were paid a $1.065 dividend. This represents a $4.26 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.4%. This is a positive change from Duke Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.05. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 15th. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 69.27%.

Insider Activity

In other Duke Energy news, SVP Bonnie B. Titone sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $124.38, for a total transaction of $248,760.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 19,608 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,438,843.04. This trade represents a 9.26% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Thomas Preston Jr. Gillespie sold 6,700 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $124.26, for a total transaction of $832,542.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 46,422 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,768,397.72. This trade represents a 12.61% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.14% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

DUK has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $129.00 to $127.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, September 25th. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $131.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $132.00 target price on shares of Duke Energy in a research note on Tuesday, July 1st. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Duke Energy in a research note on Saturday, September 27th. Finally, Scotiabank set a $137.00 target price on shares of Duke Energy and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a research note on Friday. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Duke Energy currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $132.25.

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.