Duke Energy Corporation $DUK Shares Sold by Bell Bank

Key Points

• Bell Bank has reduced its stake in Duke Energy (10.3%) during the second quarter, holding 78,607 shares now valued at approximately $9.27 million.
• Analysts are optimistic about Duke Energy, with multiple firms adjusting target prices upward; UBS maintains a "neutral" rating with a price target of $127, while Barclays has increased theirs to $131.
• Duke Energy announced a quarterly dividend increase to $1.065, representing a 3.5% yield, which reflects the company's commitment to returning value to shareholders.

Bell Bank lessened its position in Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK - Free Report) by 10.3% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 78,607 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 9,022 shares during the period. Bell Bank's holdings in Duke Energy were worth $9,276,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Perpetual Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Duke Energy in the second quarter valued at approximately $737,000. International Private Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Duke Energy by 23.2% in the second quarter. International Private Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,491 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $412,000 after buying an additional 658 shares during the last quarter. Kapstone Financial Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Duke Energy by 11.9% in the second quarter. Kapstone Financial Advisors LLC now owns 7,117 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $840,000 after buying an additional 759 shares during the last quarter. TCV Trust & Wealth Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Duke Energy by 2.9% in the second quarter. TCV Trust & Wealth Management Inc. now owns 9,020 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,064,000 after buying an additional 252 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Kingstone Capital Partners Texas LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Duke Energy in the second quarter worth approximately $6,090,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.31% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

DUK has been the topic of several research analyst reports. 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. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $122.00 to $131.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 13th. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $132.00 target price on shares of Duke Energy in a research report on Tuesday, July 1st. Morgan Stanley reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Duke Energy in a research report on Thursday, August 21st. Finally, Raymond James Financial initiated coverage on shares of Duke Energy in a research report on Friday, June 13th. They issued a "market perform" rating on the stock. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $130.62.

Duke Energy Price Performance

DUK opened at $121.08 on Friday. 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 Corporation has a 52-week low of $105.20 and a 52-week high of $127.85. The company has a 50 day moving average of $121.79 and a two-hundred day moving average of $119.28. The company has a market cap of $94.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.69, a P/E/G ratio of 2.90 and a beta of 0.39.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 5th. The utilities provider reported $1.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.29 by ($0.04). Duke Energy had a return on equity of 9.85% and a net margin of 15.51%.The business had revenue of $7.51 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $7.07 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.18 earnings per share. Duke Energy's quarterly revenue was up 4.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Duke Energy has set its FY 2025 guidance at 6.170-6.420 EPS. On average, analysts expect that Duke Energy Corporation will post 6.33 earnings per share for the current year.

Duke Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 15th were paid a $1.065 dividend. This represents a $4.26 annualized dividend 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 was Friday, August 15th. Duke Energy's payout ratio is currently 69.27%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Duke Energy

In other news, 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 value of $832,542.00. Following the completion of the transaction, 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 ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Bonnie B. Titone sold 2,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $124.38, for a total transaction of $248,760.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 19,608 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,438,843.04. This trade represents a 9.26% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.14% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.

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