LVW Advisors LLC Grows Position in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

LVW Advisors LLC grew its position in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 71.6% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 15,506 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 6,470 shares during the quarter. LVW Advisors LLC’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $1,500,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of DUK. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Duke Energy during the first quarter worth about $25,000. Altshuler Shaham Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Duke Energy in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Private Wealth Management Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Duke Energy during the fourth quarter worth approximately $26,000. Riverview Trust Co acquired a new stake in shares of Duke Energy during the first quarter worth $30,000. Finally, Pacific Capital Wealth Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in Duke Energy during the 4th quarter worth $31,000. 65.31% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Duke Energy Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:DUK opened at $100.23 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $77.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.18, a P/E/G ratio of 2.75 and a beta of 0.45. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $101.37 and a 200-day simple moving average of $97.44. Duke Energy Co. has a 52 week low of $83.06 and a 52 week high of $104.87. 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 (NYSE:DUK) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 7th. The utilities provider reported $1.44 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.39 by $0.05. Duke Energy had a net margin of 10.78% and a return on equity of 9.25%. The company had revenue of $7.67 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.31 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.20 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 5.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts forecast that Duke Energy Co. will post 5.97 EPS for the current year.

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

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

Insider Transactions at Duke Energy

In other news, CEO Lynn J. Good sold 15,000 shares of the firm’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 transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 437,464 shares in the company, valued at approximately $45,190,031.20. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, Director E Marie Mckee sold 1,695 shares of Duke Energy stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $102.31, for a total transaction of $173,415.45. Following the sale, the director now owns 4 shares in the company, valued at $409.24. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Lynn J. Good sold 15,000 shares of the firm’s 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 sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 437,464 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $45,190,031.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 26,695 shares of company stock worth $2,750,815 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.14% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $96.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on Duke Energy from $108.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, May 20th. Barclays raised their target price on Duke Energy from $99.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, April 15th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $103.00 to $98.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, June 24th. Finally, Scotiabank decreased their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $101.00 to $94.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 22nd. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $102.33.

About Duke Energy

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.