Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. Increases Stake in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. boosted its stake in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 0.1% during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 179,002 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 213 shares during the quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc.’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $17,941,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of DUK. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC acquired a new stake in Duke Energy during the 1st quarter worth approximately $25,000. Altshuler Shaham Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Duke Energy in the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Private Wealth Management Group LLC bought a new position in Duke Energy during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC increased its position in Duke Energy by 69.6% in the 2nd quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 290 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 119 shares during the period. Finally, Riverview Trust Co bought a new stake in Duke Energy during the first quarter worth about $30,000. 65.31% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Duke Energy Price Performance

Shares of Duke Energy stock traded down $0.64 on Thursday, hitting $112.82. The company had a trading volume of 726,072 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,946,570. Duke Energy Co. has a 52 week low of $83.06 and a 52 week high of $116.67. The company has a market cap of $87.07 billion, a PE ratio of 28.45, a PEG ratio of 3.09 and a beta of 0.45. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $105.24 and a 200-day simple moving average of $99.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.54, a current ratio of 0.78 and a quick ratio of 0.50.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last released its 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. Duke Energy had a return on equity of 9.25% and a net margin of 10.78%. The business had revenue of $7.17 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.84 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.91 earnings per share. Duke Energy’s quarterly revenue was up 9.0% on a year-over-year basis. Research 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. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 16th will be given a $1.045 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 16th. This is a positive change from Duke Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.03. This represents a $4.18 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.71%. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 105.03%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

DUK has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $111.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $99.00 to $102.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 11th. Scotiabank boosted their target price on Duke Energy from $94.00 to $104.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. 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 report on Wednesday, August 7th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $99.00 to $114.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $110.15.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Louis E. Renjel sold 540 shares of Duke Energy stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 8th. The shares were 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. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.