Insider Selling: Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK) EVP Sells 6,700 Shares of Stock

Key Points

• EVP Thomas Preston Jr. Gillespie of Duke Energy sold 6,700 shares at an average price of $124.26, totaling approximately $832,542, reducing his ownership by 12.61%.
• Duke Energy reported $1.25 EPS for the last quarter, missing estimates of $1.29, while revenue increased by 4.7% year-over-year to $7.51 billion.
• The company raised its quarterly dividend to $1.065 per share, representing an annualized dividend of $4.26 with a yield of 3.4%.

Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK - Get Free Report) EVP Thomas Preston Jr. Gillespie sold 6,700 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $124.26, for a total transaction of $832,542.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 46,422 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,768,397.72. This trade represents a 12.61% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website.

Duke Energy Stock Down 0.4%

Shares of DUK stock traded down $0.52 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $121.93. 439,578 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,586,333. Duke Energy Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $105.20 and a fifty-two week high of $127.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.55, a quick ratio of 0.42 and a current ratio of 0.66. The company has a market capitalization of $94.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.82, a P/E/G ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 0.36. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $119.07 and its 200 day simple moving average is $118.05.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 5th. The utilities provider reported $1.25 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.29 by ($0.04). The business had revenue of $7.51 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.07 billion. Duke Energy had a return on equity of 9.85% and a net margin of 15.51%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 4.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.18 EPS. Research analysts predict that Duke Energy Corporation will post 6.33 earnings per share for the current year.

Duke Energy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 15th will be given a $1.065 dividend. This represents a $4.26 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.5%. This is a boost from Duke Energy's previous quarterly dividend of $1.05. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 15th. Duke Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 69.27%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on DUK shares. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $132.00 price target on shares of Duke Energy in a research note on Tuesday, July 1st. UBS Group reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $127.00 price target (up from $124.00) on shares of Duke Energy in a research note on Friday, July 11th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $125.00 to $124.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, June 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $122.00 to $127.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 15th. Finally, Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $130.00 to $142.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Duke Energy presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $129.80.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Duke Energy

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Rexford Capital Inc. bought a new stake in Duke Energy in the second quarter worth about $277,000. Goodman Advisory Group LLC acquired a new stake in Duke Energy during the 2nd quarter worth about $158,000. Parr Mcknight Wealth Management Group LLC raised its holdings in Duke Energy by 0.9% during the 2nd quarter. Parr Mcknight Wealth Management Group LLC now owns 19,244 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $2,271,000 after buying an additional 164 shares during the period. Public Sector Pension Investment Board raised its holdings in Duke Energy by 2.1% during the 2nd quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 211,749 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $24,986,000 after buying an additional 4,306 shares during the period. Finally, Evergreen Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Duke Energy by 6.6% during the 2nd quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC now owns 3,843 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $453,000 after buying an additional 237 shares during the period. 65.31% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.