Edgestream Partners L.P. Makes New $2.15 Million Investment in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Edgestream Partners L.P. acquired a new position in shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund acquired 21,419 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $2,147,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of DUK. Moors & Cabot Inc. boosted its position in shares of Duke Energy by 1.8% during the 2nd quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. now owns 51,044 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $5,116,000 after acquiring an additional 897 shares in the last quarter. Excalibur Management Corp lifted its stake in Duke Energy by 1.0% during the second quarter. Excalibur Management Corp now owns 12,471 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,250,000 after purchasing an additional 119 shares during the last quarter. Wulff Hansen & CO. increased its stake in Duke Energy by 9,923.0% in the second quarter. Wulff Hansen & CO. now owns 769,265 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $77,103,000 after purchasing an additional 761,590 shares during the last quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI raised its holdings in Duke Energy by 17.7% during the second quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI now owns 8,287 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $831,000 after purchasing an additional 1,247 shares in the last quarter. Finally, One Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Duke Energy during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $426,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.31% of the company’s stock.

Duke Energy Stock Performance

Shares of DUK stock opened at $115.90 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.56. Duke Energy Co. has a 12-month low of $83.06 and a 12-month high of $118.31. The company has a market cap of $89.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.19 and a beta of 0.47. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $112.11 and a 200-day simple moving average of $103.58.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The utilities provider reported $1.18 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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 the consensus estimate of $6.84 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.91 earnings per share. Duke Energy’s quarterly revenue was up 9.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that Duke Energy Co. will post 5.97 EPS for the current year.

Duke Energy Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 16th were issued a $1.045 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 16th. This is a boost from Duke Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.03. This represents a $4.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.61%. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 105.03%.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Louis E. Renjel sold 540 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $113.64, for a total value of $61,365.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 19,884 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,259,617.76. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Duke Energy from $111.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, August 12th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on Duke Energy from $102.00 to $113.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, August 12th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued 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 target price on shares of Duke Energy from $110.00 to $122.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Finally, Scotiabank increased their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $104.00 to $113.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 20th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $114.69.

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.