DRW Securities LLC Makes New Investment in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

DRW Securities LLC acquired a new stake in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 3,877 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $388,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in DUK. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Duke Energy in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC lifted its stake in Duke Energy by 69.6% during the second quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 290 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 119 shares during the last quarter. Olistico Wealth LLC acquired a new position in Duke Energy in the second quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Riverview Trust Co purchased a new position in Duke Energy in the first quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Finally, Sachetta LLC raised its holdings 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 purchasing an additional 96 shares in the last quarter. 65.31% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. KeyCorp lifted their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $117.00 to $121.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Duke Energy from $110.00 to $122.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on Duke Energy from $102.00 to $113.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, August 12th. Barclays boosted their price objective on Duke Energy from $99.00 to $102.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 11th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of Duke Energy in a report on Thursday, September 19th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $138.00 target price on the stock. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Duke Energy currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $116.36.

Duke Energy Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:DUK opened at $117.31 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.53, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.56. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $112.79 and a 200 day moving average price of $104.13. Duke Energy Co. has a 52 week low of $83.06 and a 52 week high of $118.31. The company has a market cap of $90.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.47, a PEG ratio of 3.19 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 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.02 by $0.16. The firm had revenue of $7.17 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.84 billion. Duke Energy had a return on equity of 9.71% and a net margin of 14.29%. Duke Energy’s quarterly revenue was up 9.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.91 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that Duke Energy Co. will post 5.97 earnings per share 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 given 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 yield of 3.56%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 16th. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 105.03%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Duke Energy

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. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Duke Energy Company 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.