Canal Capital Management LLC Acquires 54,493 Shares of Duke Energy Corporation $DUK

Key Points

• Canal Capital Management LLC sharply increased its Duke Energy stake by 2,688.4% in Q1, buying 54,493 shares and bringing its total holding to 56,520 shares worth about $7.4 million.
• Duke Energy reported strong quarterly results, with EPS of $1.93 topping estimates and revenue of $9.18 billion also beating expectations, while revenue rose 11.3% year over year.
• The company continues to offer a quarterly dividend of $1.065 per share, equivalent to an annualized yield of about 3.3%; meanwhile, analysts currently rate the stock a Moderate Buy with an average price target of $138.33.

Canal Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK - Free Report) by 2,688.4% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 56,520 shares of the utilities provider's stock after acquiring an additional 54,493 shares during the quarter. Canal Capital Management LLC's holdings in Duke Energy were worth $7,401,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of DUK. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in Duke Energy by 2.6% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 78,258,757 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $9,172,709,000 after purchasing an additional 1,957,592 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Duke Energy by 1.2% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 19,292,633 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $2,266,675,000 after buying an additional 230,375 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 8,931,127 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,046,818,000 after buying an additional 58,375 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its position in Duke Energy by 13.1% in the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 8,236,893 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $965,446,000 after buying an additional 954,907 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp raised its position in Duke Energy by 0.4% in the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 7,758,700 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $960,139,000 after buying an additional 31,703 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 65.31% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Louis E. Renjel sold 3,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $125.15, for a total transaction of $438,025.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 21,415 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,680,087.25. This represents a 14.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Harry K. Sideris sold 20,000 shares of Duke Energy stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $124.37, for a total transaction of $2,487,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 96,102 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,952,205.74. This represents a 17.23% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Company insiders own 0.12% of the company's stock.

Duke Energy Stock Performance

DUK stock opened at $129.44 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $100.91 billion, a PE ratio of 19.82 and a beta of 0.38. The company has a current ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 0.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.45. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $125.06 and a 200-day moving average price of $124.78. Duke Energy Corporation has a 1-year low of $113.89 and a 1-year high of $134.49.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 4th. The utilities provider reported $1.93 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.87 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $9.18 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.44 billion. Duke Energy had a net margin of 15.49% and a return on equity of 9.73%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 11.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.76 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Duke Energy Corporation will post 6.71 earnings per share for the current year.

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 15th were issued a $1.065 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 15th. This represents a $4.26 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.3%. Duke Energy's dividend payout ratio is currently 65.24%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

DUK has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Wall Street Zen upgraded Duke Energy from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, March 28th. Barclays cut their price target on Duke Energy from $143.00 to $134.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, June 18th. BMO Capital Markets decreased their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $139.00 to $138.00 in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Capitol Sec Mgt cut shares of Duke Energy from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, April 10th. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Duke Energy from $132.00 to $136.00 in a research note on Wednesday, June 24th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $138.33.

About Duke Energy

Duke Energy Corporation is a U.S.-based electric power holding company headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina. The company's core business is the generation, transmission and distribution of electricity to residential, commercial and industrial customers. Duke Energy operates a mix of regulated electric utilities and non-regulated energy businesses, providing essential energy infrastructure and services across multiple states.

Its operating activities include owning and operating generation assets across a portfolio that encompasses nuclear, natural gas, coal, hydroelectric and an expanding array of renewable resources, as well as battery storage and grid modernization projects.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.