Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK) Shares Sold by WestEnd Advisors LLC

WestEnd Advisors LLC lessened its stake in shares of Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK - Free Report) by 95.0% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 212 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 4,015 shares during the quarter. WestEnd Advisors LLC's holdings in Duke Energy were worth $26,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Joel Isaacson & Co. LLC increased its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 23.1% during the first quarter. Joel Isaacson & Co. LLC now owns 4,428 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $540,000 after acquiring an additional 831 shares during the period. Convergence Financial LLC grew its position in Duke Energy by 12.2% in the first quarter. Convergence Financial LLC now owns 12,805 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,562,000 after buying an additional 1,395 shares during the last quarter. Capital Advisors Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Duke Energy by 4.3% in the first quarter. Capital Advisors Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,519 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $307,000 after buying an additional 104 shares during the last quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. grew its position in Duke Energy by 0.8% in the first quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 1,872,969 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $228,446,000 after buying an additional 14,397 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mallini Complete Financial Planning LLC acquired a new position in Duke Energy in the first quarter worth approximately $202,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.31% of the company's stock.

Duke Energy Trading Up 0.6%

Shares of NYSE:DUK opened at $116.93 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $117.52 and a two-hundred day moving average of $115.08. The firm has a market capitalization of $90.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.92 and a beta of 0.37. Duke Energy Corporation has a 12-month low of $99.21 and a 12-month high of $125.27. The company has a quick ratio of 0.50, a current ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.57.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The utilities provider reported $1.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.59 by $0.17. The company had revenue of $8.25 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates 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 for the quarter was up 7.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.44 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Duke Energy Corporation will post 6.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 16th. Investors of record on Friday, May 16th were paid a $1.045 dividend. This represents a $4.18 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.57%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 16th. Duke Energy's payout ratio is presently 69.32%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have issued reports on DUK. UBS Group restated a "neutral" rating and issued a $127.00 price target (up previously from $126.00) on shares of Duke Energy in a research report on Monday, June 2nd. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $125.00 to $124.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, June 18th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $127.00 to $138.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $114.00 to $121.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $130.00 to $142.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $126.94.

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.

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