Stableford Capital II LLC Cuts Position in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Stableford Capital II LLC lowered its holdings in shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 10.0% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 9,645 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 1,075 shares during the period. Stableford Capital II LLC’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $1,101,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of DUK. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Duke Energy during the 1st quarter worth approximately $25,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC raised its position in Duke Energy by 69.6% during the second quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 290 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 119 shares during the period. Olistico Wealth LLC purchased a new position in Duke Energy during the second quarter valued at $30,000. Riverview Trust Co acquired a new stake in shares of Duke Energy in the first quarter valued at about $30,000. Finally, Sachetta LLC increased its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 41.9% during the second quarter. Sachetta LLC now owns 325 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 96 shares in the last quarter. 65.31% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently issued reports on DUK. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $135.00 price objective on shares of Duke Energy in a report on Thursday, August 29th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Duke Energy from $110.00 to $122.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on Duke Energy in a research note on Thursday, September 19th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $138.00 price objective for the company. BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $120.00 to $126.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 18th. Finally, Barclays increased their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $102.00 to $118.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Duke Energy presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $121.85.

Duke Energy Stock Performance

NYSE:DUK opened at $117.15 on Wednesday. The company’s 50-day moving average is $114.55 and its two-hundred day moving average is $106.30. The firm has a market capitalization of $90.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.43, a PEG ratio of 3.06 and a beta of 0.46. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.56, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.53. Duke Energy Co. has a 1-year low of $85.79 and a 1-year high of $118.31.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 6th. The utilities provider reported $1.18 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.02 by $0.16. Duke Energy had a return on equity of 9.71% and a net margin of 14.29%. The company had revenue of $7.17 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.84 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.91 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts forecast that Duke Energy Co. will post 5.97 EPS for the current year.

Duke Energy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Friday, November 15th will be issued a $1.045 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 15th. This represents a $4.18 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.57%. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 105.03%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Louis E. Renjel sold 540 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $113.64, for a total value of $61,365.60. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 19,884 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,259,617.76. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.