Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) Holdings Increased by Janney Montgomery Scott LLC

Janney Montgomery Scott LLC lifted its stake in shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 0.6% during the first quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 628,293 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,835 shares during the period. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $60,762,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in DUK. Town & Country Bank & Trust CO dba First Bankers Trust CO raised its holdings in Duke Energy by 3.3% during the 1st quarter. Town & Country Bank & Trust CO dba First Bankers Trust CO now owns 3,390 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $328,000 after buying an additional 109 shares during the period. Breakwater Capital Group raised its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 3.9% during the first quarter. Breakwater Capital Group now owns 2,912 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $282,000 after acquiring an additional 109 shares during the period. First Command Advisory Services Inc. lifted its position in shares of Duke Energy by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. First Command Advisory Services Inc. now owns 7,949 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $771,000 after acquiring an additional 110 shares in the last quarter. Chemung Canal Trust Co. boosted its stake in Duke Energy by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Chemung Canal Trust Co. now owns 14,483 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,405,000 after purchasing an additional 113 shares during the period. Finally, Venturi Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Duke Energy by 9.0% during the 1st quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,380 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $133,000 after purchasing an additional 114 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 65.31% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

DUK has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Scotiabank lowered their price target on Duke Energy from $101.00 to $94.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 22nd. KeyCorp lifted their target price on Duke Energy from $107.00 to $112.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, May 20th. Bank of America increased their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $96.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $108.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, May 20th. Finally, Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $103.00 to $98.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, June 24th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $102.33.

Duke Energy Stock Up 0.7 %

Shares of DUK traded up $0.72 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $100.56. 1,929,944 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,201,042. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.54, a quick ratio of 0.50 and a current ratio of 0.78. The company has a market cap of $77.61 billion, a PE ratio of 25.26, a PEG ratio of 2.74 and a beta of 0.45. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $101.51 and its 200-day moving average is $97.53. Duke Energy Co. has a 52 week low of $83.06 and a 52 week high of $104.87.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 7th. The utilities provider reported $1.44 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.39 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $7.67 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.31 billion. Duke Energy had a return on equity of 9.25% and a net margin of 10.78%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.20 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Duke Energy Co. will post 5.97 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 17th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 17th were given a $1.025 dividend. This represents a $4.10 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.08%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 16th. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 103.02%.

Insider Transactions at Duke Energy

In other Duke Energy news, EVP Julia S. Janson sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $102.79, for a total value of $1,027,900.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 68,657 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,057,253.03. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In related news, CEO Lynn J. Good sold 15,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.30, for a total value of $1,549,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 437,464 shares in the company, valued at $45,190,031.20. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Julia S. Janson sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $102.79, for a total value of $1,027,900.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 68,657 shares in the company, valued at $7,057,253.03. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 26,695 shares of company stock worth $2,750,815. Company insiders own 0.14% of the company’s stock.

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.