Farther Finance Advisors LLC Acquires 11,435 Shares of Duke Energy Corporation $DUK

Key Points

• Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its stake in Duke Energy by 60.8%, acquiring an additional 11,435 shares during the 2nd quarter, bringing its total holdings to 30,233 shares valued at approximately $3.57 million.
• Duke Energy reported lower-than-expected earnings per share of $1.25 for the last quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimate of $1.29, although its revenue of $7.51 billion exceeded expectations.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend increase to $1.065 per share, marking a positive change from its previous dividend, representing an annualized yield of 3.5% with a payout ratio of 69.27%.

Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK - Free Report) by 60.8% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 30,233 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 11,435 shares during the period. Farther Finance Advisors LLC's holdings in Duke Energy were worth $3,568,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Andrew Hill Investment Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 338.6% in the first quarter. Andrew Hill Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 37,763 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $4,606,000 after acquiring an additional 29,153 shares during the last quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in Duke Energy by 7.7% during the 1st quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 291,667 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $35,575,000 after acquiring an additional 20,942 shares during the period. Pinnacle Financial Partners Inc lifted its stake in Duke Energy by 9.9% in the 1st quarter. Pinnacle Financial Partners Inc now owns 127,419 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $14,451,000 after purchasing an additional 11,445 shares in the last quarter. Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc. raised its position in shares of Duke Energy by 8.1% during the 1st quarter. Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc. now owns 51,354 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $6,264,000 after buying an additional 3,837 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 1.1% in the first quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 8,656,244 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,055,087,000 after buying an additional 93,699 shares during the period. 65.31% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on DUK shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $127.00 to $131.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 21st. Morgan Stanley reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Duke Energy in a research note on Thursday, August 21st. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $132.00 price objective on Duke Energy in a research report on Tuesday, July 1st. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on Duke Energy from $131.00 to $132.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 6th. Finally, 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 note on Friday, July 11th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $130.62.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Bonnie B. Titone sold 2,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $124.38, for a total value of $248,760.00. Following the completion of the transaction, 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 transaction 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 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 transaction of $832,542.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 46,422 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,768,397.72. This trade represents a 12.61% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.14% of the company's stock.

Duke Energy Stock Up 0.5%

NYSE:DUK traded up $0.63 on Monday, reaching $121.71. The stock had a trading volume of 2,061,995 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,513,562. The company has a current ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 0.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.55. The company has a 50-day moving average of $121.87 and a 200 day moving average of $119.38. Duke Energy Corporation has a 12-month low of $105.20 and a 12-month high of $127.85. The stock has a market cap of $94.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.79, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.92 and a beta of 0.39.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The utilities provider reported $1.25 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.29 by ($0.04). Duke Energy had a return on equity of 9.85% and a net margin of 15.51%.The company had revenue of $7.51 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.07 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.18 earnings per share. The firm'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, research analysts predict that Duke Energy Corporation will post 6.33 earnings per share for the current year.

Duke Energy Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 15th were paid a dividend of $1.065 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 15th. This represents a $4.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.5%. This is a boost from Duke Energy's previous quarterly dividend of $1.05. Duke Energy's dividend payout ratio is 69.27%.

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.