Aviance Capital Partners LLC Acquires 2,552 Shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Aviance Capital Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 16.8% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 17,750 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,552 shares during the period. Aviance Capital Partners LLC’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $1,717,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its stake in Duke Energy by 4.6% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 23,010,030 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,030,865,000 after acquiring an additional 1,002,157 shares during the period. Capital Research Global Investors increased its stake in Duke Energy by 4.8% during the fourth quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 11,141,020 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,081,125,000 after acquiring an additional 509,039 shares during the period. Morgan Stanley increased its stake in Duke Energy by 4.9% during the third quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 10,468,016 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $923,907,000 after acquiring an additional 492,011 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in Duke Energy by 11.0% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 8,515,388 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $799,599,000 after acquiring an additional 842,458 shares during the period. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. increased its stake in Duke Energy by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 8,113,443 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $787,328,000 after acquiring an additional 42,782 shares during the period. 65.31% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Duke Energy Stock Down 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE:DUK traded down $0.17 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $100.06. 314,012 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,930,129. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.54, a current ratio of 0.78 and a quick ratio of 0.50. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $101.37 and a 200-day moving average price of $97.44. The company has a market cap of $77.22 billion, a PE ratio of 25.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.75 and a beta of 0.45. Duke Energy Co. has a 12 month low of $83.06 and a 12 month high of $104.87.

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

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 17th. Investors of record on Friday, May 17th were issued a dividend of $1.025 per share. This represents a $4.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.10%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 16th. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 103.02%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Lynn J. Good sold 15,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, 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 accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, EVP Julia S. Janson sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the executive vice president now owns 68,657 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,057,253.03. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, 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 directly owns 437,464 shares in the company, valued at approximately $45,190,031.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 26,695 shares of company stock valued at $2,750,815. Company insiders own 0.14% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

DUK has been the topic of several analyst reports. Barclays upped their price objective on Duke Energy from $99.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, April 15th. Bank of America upped their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $96.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price 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. Mizuho upped their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $89.00 to $99.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, April 5th. Finally, Scotiabank lowered their target price on Duke Energy from $101.00 to $94.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 22nd. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target 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.