Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) Shares Sold by Busey Bank

Busey Bank cut its stake in shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 2.1% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 5,481 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 118 shares during the quarter. Busey Bank’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $549,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Duke Energy during the first quarter worth about $25,000. Altshuler Shaham Ltd acquired a new position in Duke Energy in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Private Wealth Management Group LLC acquired a new position in Duke Energy in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC boosted its holdings in Duke Energy by 69.6% in the second quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 290 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 119 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Riverview Trust Co acquired a new position in Duke Energy in the first quarter valued at approximately $30,000. 65.31% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Duke Energy Stock Performance

Shares of Duke Energy stock traded down $0.23 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $112.50. 1,014,692 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,935,554. Duke Energy Co. has a 1 year low of $83.06 and a 1 year high of $116.67. The company has a current ratio of 0.78, a quick ratio of 0.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.54. The business has a 50-day moving average of $106.27 and a 200-day moving average of $100.38. The stock has a market capitalization of $86.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.24, a P/E/G ratio of 3.09 and a beta of 0.45.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 6th. The utilities provider reported $1.18 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.02 by $0.16. The firm had revenue of $7.17 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.84 billion. Duke Energy had a return on equity of 9.25% and a net margin of 10.78%. Duke Energy’s revenue was up 9.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.91 earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that Duke Energy Co. will post 5.97 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 16th will be given a $1.045 dividend. This is a boost from Duke Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.03. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 16th. This represents a $4.18 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.72%. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 105.03%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. KeyCorp upped their price target on Duke Energy from $114.00 to $117.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Duke Energy from $111.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, August 12th. Evercore ISI upped their price target on Duke Energy from $108.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. 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, The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on Duke Energy from $102.00 to $113.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, August 12th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $110.85.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Duke Energy news, EVP Louis E. Renjel sold 540 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 owns 19,884 shares in the company, valued at $2,259,617.76. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.