Liberty Wealth Management LLC Boosts Stock Holdings in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Liberty Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 251.2% during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 7,860 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 5,622 shares during the period. Liberty Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $788,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. PFG Investments LLC increased its position in shares of Duke Energy by 14.3% during the 2nd quarter. PFG Investments LLC now owns 31,931 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $3,200,000 after purchasing an additional 3,990 shares during the last quarter. Fox Hill Wealth Management grew its position in shares of Duke Energy by 3.9% during the 2nd quarter. Fox Hill Wealth Management now owns 19,117 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,916,000 after acquiring an additional 715 shares during the period. Pinnacle West Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 2.1% in the 2nd quarter. Pinnacle West Asset Management Inc. now owns 4,425 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $444,000 after purchasing an additional 90 shares during the period. First Foundation Advisors grew its holdings in Duke Energy by 62.7% during the second quarter. First Foundation Advisors now owns 1,884 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $189,000 after purchasing an additional 726 shares during the period. Finally, Adapt Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in Duke Energy by 23.6% in the second quarter. Adapt Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 6,735 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $675,000 after buying an additional 1,285 shares during the last quarter. 65.31% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Duke Energy

In related news, EVP Louis E. Renjel sold 540 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 8th. The shares were 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 directly owns 19,884 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,259,617.76. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Duke Energy Stock Performance

Shares of DUK opened at $117.16 on Tuesday. Duke Energy Co. has a 52 week low of $83.06 and a 52 week high of $118.11. The company has a quick ratio of 0.53, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.56. The stock has a market cap of $90.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.44, a P/E/G ratio of 3.20 and a beta of 0.46. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $109.87 and its 200-day moving average price is $102.41.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The utilities provider reported $1.18 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.02 by $0.16. Duke Energy had a return on equity of 9.71% and a net margin of 14.29%. The business had revenue of $7.17 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.84 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.91 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that Duke Energy Co. will post 5.97 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 16th will be issued a $1.045 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 16th. This is a boost from Duke Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.03. This represents a $4.18 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.57%. Duke Energy’s payout ratio is 105.03%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on DUK shares. Morgan Stanley increased their price target 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. Bank of America lifted their target price 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. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $135.00 price objective on shares of Duke Energy in a report on Thursday, August 29th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $102.00 to $113.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, August 12th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on Duke Energy from $114.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $113.92.

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.