Mutual of America Capital Management LLC Reduces Position in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Mutual of America Capital Management LLC lessened its stake in shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 3.7% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 97,325 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 3,760 shares during the period. Mutual of America Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $9,755,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Duke Energy during the first quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC raised its stake in Duke Energy by 69.6% in the second quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 290 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 119 shares in the last quarter. Olistico Wealth LLC bought a new position in Duke Energy in the second quarter worth approximately $30,000. Riverview Trust Co bought a new position in Duke Energy in the first quarter worth approximately $30,000. Finally, Sachetta LLC raised its stake in Duke Energy by 41.9% in the second quarter. Sachetta LLC now owns 325 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 96 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 65.31% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Duke Energy

In related news, EVP Louis E. Renjel sold 540 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the executive vice president now owns 19,884 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,259,617.76. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Duke Energy Price Performance

NYSE:DUK opened at $115.90 on Thursday. 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 firm has a market cap of $89.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.12, a PEG ratio of 3.19 and a beta of 0.47. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $112.11 and its two-hundred day moving average is $103.58.

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

Duke Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 16th were paid a dividend of $1.045 per share. This is a positive change from Duke Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.03. This represents a $4.18 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.61%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 16th. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 105.03%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently commented on DUK. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $120.00 to $126.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Scotiabank upped their price target on Duke Energy from $104.00 to $113.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 20th. Barclays upped their price target on Duke Energy from $99.00 to $102.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 11th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective 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, Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $108.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Duke Energy 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.