Benjamin Edwards Inc. Sells 23,903 Shares of Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK)

Key Points

• Benjamin Edwards Inc. reduced its stake in Duke Energy by 34.4%, selling 23,903 shares, and now holds 45,626 shares valued at approximately $5.57 million.
• Duke Energy will pay its increased quarterly dividend of $1.065 on September 16th, marking a rise from $1.05 with an annual yield of 3.4%.
• Analysts have raised their price targets for Duke Energy, with targets as high as $142.00, reflecting a generally positive outlook from research firms.

Benjamin Edwards Inc. reduced its stake in shares of Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK - Free Report) by 34.4% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 45,626 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 23,903 shares during the quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc.'s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $5,565,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Covestor Ltd lifted its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 22.5% during the 1st quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 534 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $65,000 after purchasing an additional 98 shares during the last quarter. Koss Olinger Consulting LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Duke Energy during the 1st quarter worth $294,000. Lcnb Corp raised its stake in Duke Energy by 1.0% in the first quarter. Lcnb Corp now owns 11,552 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,409,000 after buying an additional 110 shares during the last quarter. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT purchased a new stake in Duke Energy in the first quarter valued at about $7,885,000. Finally, Townsquare Capital LLC raised its stake in Duke Energy by 3.0% in the first quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC now owns 123,379 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $15,048,000 after buying an additional 3,621 shares during the last quarter. 65.31% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Duke Energy Stock Down 0.5%

Duke Energy stock opened at $125.36 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $97.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.02 and a beta of 0.36. Duke Energy Corporation has a 52 week low of $105.20 and a 52 week high of $127.85. The business's 50-day moving average price is $118.24 and its 200 day moving average price is $117.59. The company has a quick ratio of 0.42, a current ratio of 0.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.55.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The utilities provider reported $1.25 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.29 by ($0.04). The company had revenue of $7.51 billion for 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 firm's revenue was up 4.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.18 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Duke Energy Corporation will post 6.33 earnings per share for the current year.

Duke Energy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 16th. Shareholders 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 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.4%. Duke Energy's dividend payout ratio is 67.97%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have commented on DUK. Scotiabank increased their price target on Duke Energy from $120.00 to $128.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 6th. UBS Group reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $127.00 price target (up from $124.00) on shares of Duke Energy in a research note on Friday, July 11th. Citigroup increased their price target on Duke Energy from $130.00 to $142.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $132.00 price target on Duke Energy in a research note on Tuesday, July 1st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Duke Energy from $127.00 to $138.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Duke Energy presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $129.20.

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.

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