Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) Holdings Trimmed by Independence Bank of Kentucky

Independence Bank of Kentucky cut its holdings in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 2.2% during the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 5,977 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 137 shares during the quarter. Independence Bank of Kentucky’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $578,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Sugarloaf Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in Duke Energy by 13.9% during the fourth quarter. Sugarloaf Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,826 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $274,000 after purchasing an additional 344 shares during the last quarter. Howard Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Duke Energy during the 4th quarter worth $219,000. Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC grew its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 4.5% in the 4th quarter. Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC now owns 25,824 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,545,000 after acquiring an additional 1,122 shares during the last quarter. Western Pacific Wealth Management LP raised its position in shares of Duke Energy by 39.4% during the fourth quarter. Western Pacific Wealth Management LP now owns 2,326 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $226,000 after purchasing an additional 657 shares during the period. Finally, Wagner Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 3.4% during the fourth quarter. Wagner Wealth Management LLC now owns 17,421 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,691,000 after purchasing an additional 576 shares during the last quarter. 65.31% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Duke Energy Trading Down 0.4 %

Shares of NYSE:DUK opened at $100.23 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $101.37 and a two-hundred day moving average of $97.45. The company has a quick ratio of 0.50, a current ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.54. Duke Energy Co. has a 12-month low of $83.06 and a 12-month high of $104.87. The firm has a market capitalization of $77.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.76 and a beta of 0.45.

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

Duke Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 17th. Investors of record on Friday, May 17th were given a dividend of $1.025 per share. This represents a $4.10 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.09%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 16th. Duke Energy’s payout ratio is presently 103.02%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Duke Energy

In other news, CEO Lynn J. Good sold 15,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.30, for a total transaction of $1,549,500.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 437,464 shares in the company, valued at approximately $45,190,031.20. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Duke Energy news, CEO Lynn J. Good sold 15,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 owns 437,464 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $45,190,031.20. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director E Marie Mckee sold 1,695 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $102.31, for a total value of $173,415.45. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 4 shares in the company, valued at approximately $409.24. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 26,695 shares of company stock worth $2,750,815 over the last ninety days. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on DUK shares. Scotiabank dropped their price target on 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. Bank of America lifted their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $96.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of 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. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $108.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, May 20th. Finally, KeyCorp increased their target price on Duke Energy from $107.00 to $112.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, May 20th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Duke Energy currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $102.33.

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.