Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) Shares Sold by Orleans Capital Management Corp LA

Orleans Capital Management Corp LA cut its holdings in shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 1.0% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 23,344 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 233 shares during the period. Orleans Capital Management Corp LA’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $2,340,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Pinnacle West Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 2.1% in the 2nd quarter. Pinnacle West Asset Management Inc. now owns 4,425 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $444,000 after acquiring an additional 90 shares during the last quarter. Sachetta LLC increased its stake in Duke Energy by 41.9% during the second quarter. Sachetta LLC now owns 325 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 96 shares during the last quarter. SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC raised its position in Duke Energy by 1.6% in the second quarter. SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC now owns 6,093 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $611,000 after purchasing an additional 98 shares during the period. Waddell & Associates LLC grew its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 2.7% during the 2nd quarter. Waddell & Associates LLC now owns 3,753 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $376,000 after purchasing an additional 99 shares during the period. Finally, Indiana Trust & Investment Management CO increased its position in shares of Duke Energy by 4.9% during the 2nd quarter. Indiana Trust & Investment Management CO now owns 2,147 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $215,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other 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 business’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 transaction of $61,365.60. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 19,884 shares in the company, valued at $2,259,617.76. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Duke Energy Stock Performance

Shares of Duke Energy stock opened at $115.30 on Tuesday. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $113.65 and a 200-day simple moving average of $104.85. 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 one year low of $83.06 and a one year high of $118.31. The company has a market cap of $88.98 billion, a PE ratio of 28.97, a P/E/G ratio of 3.22 and a beta of 0.47.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 6th. The utilities provider reported $1.18 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.02 by $0.16. The company had revenue of $7.17 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.84 billion. Duke Energy had a net margin of 14.29% and a return on equity of 9.71%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 9.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.91 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Duke Energy Co. will post 5.97 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 16th were issued a dividend of $1.045 per share. This represents a $4.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.63%. This is an increase from Duke Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.03. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 16th. Duke Energy’s payout ratio is 105.03%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have commented on DUK. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $114.00 to $120.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. Evercore ISI increased their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $108.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. Scotiabank boosted their target price on Duke Energy from $104.00 to $113.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 20th. Bank of America raised their price target on Duke Energy from $116.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. Finally, Barclays increased their target price on Duke Energy from $99.00 to $102.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 11th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $117.07.

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.