Duke Energy Corporation $DUK Shares Sold by Cooper Financial Group

Key Points

• Cooper Financial Group reduced its stakes in Duke Energy Corporation by 62.6% during the 2nd quarter, owning 2,681 shares valued at $316,000 at the end of the period.
• Duke Energy declared a quarterly dividend of $1.065, an increase from the previous $1.05, representing an annualized dividend yield of 3.5%.
• Despite reporting earnings per share of $1.25 for the last quarter, Duke Energy missed analysts' consensus estimates of $1.29, although its revenue exceeded expectations at $7.51 billion.

Cooper Financial Group lessened its holdings in shares of Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK - Free Report) by 62.6% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,681 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 4,488 shares during the quarter. Cooper Financial Group's holdings in Duke Energy were worth $316,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Toth Financial Advisory Corp raised its holdings in Duke Energy by 31.6% in the 1st quarter. Toth Financial Advisory Corp now owns 346 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 83 shares during the period. Reyes Financial Architecture Inc. raised its holdings in Duke Energy by 4.8% in the 1st quarter. Reyes Financial Architecture Inc. now owns 1,827 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $223,000 after buying an additional 83 shares during the period. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC raised its holdings in Duke Energy by 2.8% in the 1st quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 3,034 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $370,000 after buying an additional 84 shares during the period. Lokken Investment Group LLC raised its holdings in Duke Energy by 3.3% in the 1st quarter. Lokken Investment Group LLC now owns 2,633 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $321,000 after buying an additional 84 shares during the period. Finally, Sheets Smith Wealth Management raised its holdings in 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 during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.31% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently issued reports on DUK shares. Raymond James Financial started coverage on shares of Duke Energy in a report on Friday, June 13th. They issued a "market perform" rating on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group lowered shares of Duke Energy from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and cut their price target for the stock from $141.00 to $134.00 in a research note on Friday, September 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $127.00 to $131.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 21st. Scotiabank boosted their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $120.00 to $128.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 6th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group set a $132.00 price target on shares of Duke Energy in a research note on Tuesday, July 1st. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $131.50.

Duke Energy Price Performance

Shares of NYSE DUK opened at $121.57 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.55, a current ratio of 0.66 and a quick ratio of 0.42. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $122.50 and a 200 day moving average price of $119.59. Duke Energy Corporation has a 1-year low of $105.20 and a 1-year high of $127.85. The company has a market cap of $94.53 billion, a PE ratio of 19.77, a P/E/G ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 0.44.

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 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%.Duke Energy's revenue for the quarter was up 4.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.18 earnings per share. Duke Energy has set its FY 2025 guidance at 6.170-6.420 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Duke Energy Corporation will post 6.33 EPS for the current year.

Duke Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 15th were given a $1.065 dividend. 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 3.5%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 15th. Duke Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 69.27%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Duke Energy news, SVP Bonnie B. Titone sold 2,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $124.38, for a total value of $248,760.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 19,608 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,438,843.04. This trade represents a 9.26% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Thomas Preston Jr. Gillespie sold 6,700 shares of Duke Energy stock in a transaction dated 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 $5,768,397.72. This represents a 12.61% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.14% of the stock is owned by company 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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