Mount Yale Investment Advisors LLC Raises Holdings in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Mount Yale Investment Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 34.6% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 11,967 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 3,074 shares during the period. Mount Yale Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $1,157,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Duke Energy in the 1st quarter worth approximately $25,000. Altshuler Shaham Ltd acquired a new stake in Duke Energy during the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Private Wealth Management Group LLC acquired a new stake in Duke Energy during the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Riverview Trust Co acquired a new stake in Duke Energy during the 1st quarter valued at $30,000. Finally, Pacific Capital Wealth Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in Duke Energy during the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. 65.31% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Duke Energy Stock Up 0.6 %

NYSE:DUK traded up $0.65 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $108.68. The company had a trading volume of 3,050,331 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,897,345. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $102.79 and a 200-day simple moving average of $98.40. The company has a current ratio of 0.78, a quick ratio of 0.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.54. Duke Energy Co. has a 1 year low of $83.06 and a 1 year high of $110.02. The firm has a market capitalization of $83.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.14, a PEG ratio of 2.97 and a beta of 0.45.

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

Duke Energy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 16th will be given a dividend of $1.045 per share. This represents a $4.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.85%. This is a positive change from Duke Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.03. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 16th. Duke Energy’s payout ratio is presently 103.02%.

Insider Transactions at Duke Energy

In other news, EVP Julia S. Janson sold 10,000 shares of Duke Energy stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $102.79, for a total transaction of $1,027,900.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 68,657 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,057,253.03. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other Duke Energy news, CEO Lynn J. Good sold 15,000 shares of Duke Energy stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $103.30, for a total value of $1,549,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 437,464 shares in the company, valued at $45,190,031.20. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Julia S. Janson sold 10,000 shares of Duke Energy stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 68,657 shares of the company’s stock, 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 valued at $2,750,815. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have commented on DUK. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on Duke Energy from $103.00 to $98.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, June 24th. KeyCorp raised their price objective on Duke Energy from $112.00 to $114.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, July 22nd. Barclays raised their price objective on Duke Energy from $99.00 to $102.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 11th. Bank of America raised their price objective on Duke Energy from $96.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, April 11th. Finally, Mizuho raised their price objective on Duke Energy from $89.00 to $99.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, April 5th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $102.58.

About Duke Energy

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.