NorthRock Partners LLC Cuts Stock Position in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

NorthRock Partners LLC cut its holdings in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 12.9% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 3,141 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 465 shares during the quarter. NorthRock Partners LLC’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $362,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of DUK. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC boosted its stake in Duke Energy by 11,471.4% during the third quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC now owns 6,777,973 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $781,500,000 after buying an additional 6,719,398 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in Duke Energy by 13,829.1% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 1,125,607 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $129,782,000 after buying an additional 1,117,526 shares during the period. Mackenzie Financial Corp boosted its stake in Duke Energy by 65.7% during the second quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 2,052,969 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $205,769,000 after buying an additional 813,744 shares during the period. Wulff Hansen & CO. boosted its stake in Duke Energy by 9,923.0% during the second quarter. Wulff Hansen & CO. now owns 769,265 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $77,103,000 after buying an additional 761,590 shares during the period. Finally, BROOKFIELD Corp ON purchased a new position in Duke Energy during the first quarter worth $36,278,000. 65.31% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Duke Energy Price Performance

DUK opened at $114.08 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $115.87 and its 200 day moving average price is $108.57. Duke Energy Co. has a 12-month low of $86.61 and a 12-month high of $121.25. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.56. The firm has a market cap of $88.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.01, a PEG ratio of 3.08 and a beta of 0.47.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The utilities provider reported $1.18 earnings per share (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 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 revenue for the quarter was up 9.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.91 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Duke Energy Co. will post 5.98 earnings per share for the current year.

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be given a $1.045 dividend. This represents a $4.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.66%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 15th. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 76.98%.

Insider Transactions at Duke Energy

In other news, EVP Louis E. Renjel sold 540 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $113.64, for a total transaction of $61,365.60. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 19,884 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,259,617.76. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.14% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have commented on DUK shares. Bank of America lifted their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $116.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 29th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Duke Energy from $110.00 to $122.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on Duke Energy in a research report on Thursday, September 19th. They set a “buy” rating and a $138.00 target price for the company. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on Duke Energy from $102.00 to $113.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, August 12th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on Duke Energy from $120.00 to $126.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 18th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Duke Energy presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $121.85.

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.