Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK) Shares Acquired by Avantax Advisory Services Inc.

Key Points

• Avantax Advisory Services Inc. increased its stake in Duke Energy by 3.1%, acquiring an additional 3,208 shares, bringing its total holdings to 107,593 shares valued at approximately $13.1 million.
• Duke Energy recently reported earnings of $1.76 per share, exceeding analyst expectations, and had revenues of $8.25 billion, reflecting a 7.5% increase from the previous year.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $1.065 per share, increasing from the previous dividend of $1.05, resulting in an annualized yield of 3.55%.

Avantax Advisory Services Inc. grew its stake in shares of Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK - Free Report) by 3.1% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 107,593 shares of the utilities provider's stock after buying an additional 3,208 shares during the quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc.'s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $13,123,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Bcwm LLC purchased a new position in Duke Energy during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $9,815,000. Investment Management Corp of Ontario raised its stake in Duke Energy by 212.8% during the 4th quarter. Investment Management Corp of Ontario now owns 79,989 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $8,618,000 after purchasing an additional 54,413 shares during the last quarter. Andrew Hill Investment Advisors Inc. raised its stake in Duke Energy by 338.6% during the 1st quarter. Andrew Hill Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 37,763 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $4,606,000 after purchasing an additional 29,153 shares during the last quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in Duke Energy by 7.7% in the 1st quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 291,667 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $35,575,000 after buying an additional 20,942 shares during the period. Finally, Pinnacle Financial Partners Inc increased its holdings in Duke Energy by 9.9% in the 1st quarter. Pinnacle Financial Partners Inc now owns 127,419 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $14,451,000 after buying an additional 11,445 shares during the period. 65.31% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Duke Energy Stock Performance

DUK traded up $1.45 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $119.05. The company had a trading volume of 743,629 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,568,328. The company has a quick ratio of 0.50, a current ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.57. Duke Energy Corporation has a 1 year low of $105.20 and a 1 year high of $125.27. The business has a 50-day moving average of $116.97 and a two-hundred day moving average of $116.66. The company has a market cap of $92.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.75, a P/E/G ratio of 3.00 and a beta of 0.37.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The utilities provider reported $1.76 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.59 by $0.17. The company had revenue of $8.25 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.70 billion. Duke Energy had a return on equity of 9.88% and a net margin of 15.40%. The firm's revenue was up 7.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.44 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Duke Energy Corporation will post 6.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 15th will be issued a $1.065 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 15th. This is an increase from Duke Energy's previous quarterly dividend of $1.05. This represents a $4.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.58%. Duke Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 70.65%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently weighed in on DUK. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $127.00 to $138.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $132.00 price target on shares of Duke Energy in a research report on Tuesday, July 1st. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $130.00 to $142.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Duke Energy from $122.00 to $127.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 15th. Finally, Raymond James Financial started coverage on Duke Energy in a research note on Friday, June 13th. They set a "market perform" rating for the company. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $127.25.

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.