First County Bank CT Sells 2,803 Shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

First County Bank CT cut its position in shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 11.4% in the second quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 21,714 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 2,803 shares during the period. Duke Energy comprises approximately 1.1% of First County Bank CT’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 20th biggest holding. First County Bank CT’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $2,176,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC bought a new position in shares of Duke Energy in the 1st quarter valued at about $25,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 69.6% in the 2nd quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 290 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 119 shares during the period. Riverview Trust Co bought a new position in shares of Duke Energy during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Olistico Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in Duke Energy during the 2nd quarter valued at $30,000. Finally, Cedar Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in Duke Energy by 101.2% in the first quarter. Cedar Wealth Management LLC now owns 336 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 169 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.31% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Duke Energy

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have weighed in on DUK shares. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $120.00 to $126.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 18th. Bank of America raised their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $116.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 29th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Duke Energy from $110.00 to $122.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on Duke Energy in a research report on Thursday, September 19th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $138.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, KeyCorp lifted their target price on Duke Energy from $117.00 to $121.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $116.79.

Duke Energy Trading Down 0.9 %

NYSE DUK opened at $115.17 on Friday. Duke Energy Co. has a one year low of $83.06 and a one year high of $118.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.56, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a current ratio of 0.81. The company has a market capitalization of $88.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.94, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.22 and a beta of 0.47. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $113.32 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $104.44.

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

Duke Energy Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 16th. Investors of record on Friday, August 16th were given a dividend of $1.045 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 16th. This represents a $4.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.63%. This is an increase from Duke Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.03. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 105.03%.

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.