Biondo Investment Advisors LLC Boosts Holdings in Duke Energy Corporation $DUK

Key Points

• Biondo Investment Advisors LLC increased its stake in Duke Energy Corporation by 2.9%, acquiring an additional 2,514 shares, making Duke Energy the firm's 26th largest holding with a value of approximately $11.05 million.
• Duke Energy recently declared a quarterly dividend of $1.065 per share, up from the previous $1.05, indicating a robust annualized yield of 3.4% based on current stock prices.
• Despite missing EPS expectations in its latest earnings report, Duke Energy’s revenue for the quarter exceeded forecasts, amounting to $7.51 billion, reflecting a 4.7% year-over-year increase.

Biondo Investment Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK - Free Report) by 2.9% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 90,613 shares of the utilities provider's stock after buying an additional 2,514 shares during the quarter. Duke Energy comprises about 1.6% of Biondo Investment Advisors LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 26th biggest holding. Biondo Investment Advisors LLC's holdings in Duke Energy were worth $11,052,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Toth Financial Advisory Corp lifted its stake in Duke Energy by 31.6% during the first quarter. Toth Financial Advisory Corp now owns 346 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 83 shares during the last quarter. Reyes Financial Architecture Inc. raised its holdings in Duke Energy by 4.8% during the first quarter. Reyes Financial Architecture Inc. now owns 1,827 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $223,000 after purchasing an additional 83 shares in the last quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC raised its holdings in Duke Energy by 2.8% during the first quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 3,034 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $370,000 after purchasing an additional 84 shares in the last quarter. Lokken Investment Group LLC lifted its position in shares of Duke Energy by 3.3% during the 1st quarter. Lokken Investment Group LLC now owns 2,633 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $321,000 after buying an additional 84 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sheets Smith Wealth Management boosted its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 0.3% in the 1st quarter. Sheets Smith Wealth Management now owns 27,517 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $3,356,000 after buying an additional 85 shares in the last quarter. 65.31% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $132.00 price target on shares of Duke Energy in a research note on Tuesday, July 1st. 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 report on Wednesday, May 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Duke Energy from $127.00 to $131.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 21st. UBS Group reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $127.00 target price (up from $124.00) on shares of Duke Energy in a research report on Friday, July 11th. Finally, Citigroup raised their price target on Duke Energy from $130.00 to $142.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $130.07.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP Bonnie B. Titone sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $124.38, for a total value of $248,760.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 19,608 shares in the company, valued at $2,438,843.04. This trade represents a 9.26% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Thomas Preston Jr. Gillespie sold 6,700 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $124.26, for a total transaction of $832,542.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 46,422 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,768,397.72. This represents a 12.61% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.14% of the company's stock.

Duke Energy Stock Performance

Shares of Duke Energy stock traded up $0.15 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $123.26. 3,102,019 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,571,244. Duke Energy Corporation has a 1 year low of $105.20 and a 1 year high of $127.85. The stock has a market capitalization of $95.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.04, a P/E/G ratio of 3.00 and a beta of 0.36. The company has a current ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 0.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.55. The business has a 50-day moving average of $119.94 and a 200-day moving average of $118.47.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The utilities provider reported $1.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.29 by ($0.04). The firm 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 company's revenue was up 4.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.18 earnings per share. Duke Energy has set its FY 2025 guidance at 6.170-6.420 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Duke Energy Corporation will post 6.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 16th. Investors of record on Friday, August 15th will be paid a $1.065 dividend. This represents a $4.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend 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%.

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.