Bleakley Financial Group LLC Lowers Stake in Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK)

Bleakley Financial Group LLC lowered its position in Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK - Free Report) by 64.9% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 26,044 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 48,242 shares during the period. Bleakley Financial Group LLC's holdings in Duke Energy were worth $3,177,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in DUK. Toth Financial Advisory Corp raised its position in shares of Duke Energy by 31.6% during the 1st quarter. Toth Financial Advisory Corp now owns 346 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 83 shares during the period. Reyes Financial Architecture Inc. increased its stake 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 worth $223,000 after buying 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 valued at $370,000 after acquiring an additional 84 shares during the period. Sheets Smith Wealth Management lifted its position in shares of Duke Energy by 0.3% in the first quarter. Sheets Smith Wealth Management now owns 27,517 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $3,356,000 after acquiring an additional 85 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quent Capital LLC boosted its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 3.0% in the first quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 2,993 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $365,000 after acquiring an additional 86 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.31% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently commented on DUK shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Duke Energy from $122.00 to $127.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $125.00 to $124.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, June 18th. Barclays decreased their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $123.00 to $122.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, July 1st. Citigroup raised their price objective on Duke Energy from $130.00 to $142.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets decreased their target price on Duke Energy from $128.00 to $123.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 10th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $127.25.

Duke Energy Trading Up 0.6%

Shares of NYSE:DUK traded up $0.73 on Wednesday, hitting $117.83. 2,160,639 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,469,533. The stock has a market capitalization of $91.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.92 and a beta of 0.37. Duke Energy Corporation has a 12 month low of $105.20 and a 12 month high of $125.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.57, a current ratio of 0.77 and a quick ratio of 0.50. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $116.52 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $115.88.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The utilities provider reported $1.76 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.59 by $0.17. The firm had revenue of $8.25 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.70 billion. Duke Energy had a net margin of 15.40% and a return on equity of 9.88%. The company's revenue was up 7.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.44 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that Duke Energy Corporation will post 6.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 15th will be given a dividend of $1.065 per share. This is an increase from Duke Energy's previous quarterly dividend of $1.05. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 15th. This represents a $4.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.62%. Duke Energy's dividend payout ratio is presently 69.32%.

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.