Commonwealth Financial Services LLC Has $318,000 Holdings in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Commonwealth Financial Services LLC trimmed its holdings in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 34.0% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,164 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 1,631 shares during the period. Commonwealth Financial Services LLC’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $318,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in DUK. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in Duke Energy by 0.5% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 70,675,702 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $6,835,047,000 after purchasing an additional 324,289 shares during the period. Capital Research Global Investors boosted its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 3.2% during the 1st quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 11,493,340 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,111,521,000 after buying an additional 352,320 shares during the period. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in Duke Energy by 1.7% in the 2nd quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 2,471,035 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $247,672,000 after buying an additional 40,243 shares during the last quarter. Capital Wealth Planning LLC lifted its position in Duke Energy by 1.6% during the first quarter. Capital Wealth Planning LLC now owns 1,973,369 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $190,845,000 after acquiring an additional 31,309 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 15.2% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,816,758 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $182,101,000 after acquiring an additional 240,136 shares during the period. 65.31% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Duke Energy Trading Up 1.1 %

Shares of DUK opened at $116.37 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.56, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a current ratio of 0.81. Duke Energy Co. has a 52-week low of $83.06 and a 52-week high of $118.31. The firm has a market cap of $89.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.24, a PEG ratio of 3.19 and a beta of 0.47. The business’s fifty day moving average is $112.55 and its 200-day moving average is $103.97.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The utilities provider reported $1.18 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.02 by $0.16. Duke Energy had a return on equity of 9.71% and a net margin of 14.29%. The firm had revenue of $7.17 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.84 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.91 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 9.0% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts anticipate that Duke Energy Co. will post 5.97 EPS for the current fiscal 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 given a $1.045 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 16th. This represents a $4.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.59%. This is a positive change from Duke Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.03. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 105.03%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

DUK has been the subject of several research reports. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $135.00 price target on shares of Duke Energy in a report on Thursday, August 29th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price 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 target on shares of Duke Energy from $116.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $102.00 to $113.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, August 12th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $111.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, August 12th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $116.36.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Louis E. Renjel sold 540 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 in the company, valued at approximately $2,259,617.76. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

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.