Clayton Financial Group LLC Buys 376 Shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Clayton Financial Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 17.3% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,546 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 376 shares during the quarter. Clayton Financial Group LLC’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $246,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Howard Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Duke Energy during the fourth quarter worth approximately $219,000. Western Pacific Wealth Management LP raised its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 39.4% in the fourth quarter. Western Pacific Wealth Management LP now owns 2,326 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $226,000 after purchasing an additional 657 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC raised its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 3.2% in the first quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 435,157 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $42,084,000 after purchasing an additional 13,406 shares in the last quarter. Duality Advisers LP raised its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 57.8% in the first quarter. Duality Advisers LP now owns 27,071 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,618,000 after purchasing an additional 9,917 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Clearbridge Investments LLC raised its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 182.5% in the fourth quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 39,014 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $3,786,000 after purchasing an additional 25,203 shares in the last quarter. 65.31% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Duke Energy Price Performance

Shares of DUK stock opened at $113.95 on Monday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $107.96 and its 200-day moving average is $101.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.56, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a current ratio of 0.81. The stock has a market capitalization of $87.99 billion, a PE ratio of 28.63, a PEG ratio of 3.13 and a beta of 0.45. Duke Energy Co. has a 52 week low of $83.06 and a 52 week high of $116.67.

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 the consensus estimate of $1.02 by $0.16. The business had revenue of $7.17 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.84 billion. Duke Energy had a return on equity of 9.71% and a net margin of 14.29%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 9.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.91 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Duke Energy Co. will post 5.97 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 16th. Investors of record on Friday, August 16th will be issued a $1.045 dividend. This is a boost from Duke Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.03. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 16th. This represents a $4.18 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.67%. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 105.03%.

Insider Activity at Duke Energy

In related 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 value of $61,365.60. Following the transaction, 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 this hyperlink. 0.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently commented on DUK shares. Bank of America upped their target price on Duke Energy from $116.00 to $118.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Duke Energy from $110.00 to $122.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. Scotiabank increased their price objective on Duke Energy from $104.00 to $113.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 20th. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on Duke Energy from $99.00 to $114.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 15th. Finally, Barclays increased their price objective 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 six have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $113.92.

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.