Greenwood Capital Associates LLC Sells 6,411 Shares of Duke Energy Corporation $DUK

Key Points

• Greenwood Capital Associates LLC reduced its stake in Duke Energy Corporation by 20%, selling 6,411 shares, leaving them with 25,588 shares valued at $3,019,000.
• Duke Energy reported $1.25 earnings per share in its latest quarterly results, missing the consensus estimate of $1.29, but its revenue of $7.51 billion surpassed expectations.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $1.065 per share, up from $1.05, reflecting a 3.5% yield and a payout ratio of 69.27%.

Greenwood Capital Associates LLC trimmed its stake in Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK - Free Report) by 20.0% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 25,588 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 6,411 shares during the period. Greenwood Capital Associates LLC's holdings in Duke Energy were worth $3,019,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. GQG Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Duke Energy by 17,880.0% during the first quarter. GQG Partners LLC now owns 10,249,508 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,250,133,000 after buying an additional 10,192,503 shares during the last quarter. Nuveen LLC bought a new position in shares of Duke Energy during the 1st quarter worth approximately $702,351,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. lifted its position in Duke Energy by 88.1% during the first quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. now owns 4,861,309 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $592,934,000 after acquiring an additional 2,276,948 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in Duke Energy by 2.3% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 74,562,000 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $9,094,327,000 after purchasing an additional 1,676,061 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. increased its position in shares of Duke Energy by 359.1% during the first quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. now owns 1,132,613 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $138,145,000 after purchasing an additional 885,900 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.31% of the company's stock.

Duke Energy Stock Performance

Shares of DUK stock opened at $121.57 on Friday. Duke Energy Corporation has a 52-week low of $105.20 and a 52-week high of $127.85. The company has a quick ratio of 0.42, a current ratio of 0.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.55. The stock has a market cap of $94.53 billion, a PE ratio of 19.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 0.44. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $122.50 and a 200-day simple moving average of $119.59.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK - Get Free Report) last announced 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). Duke Energy had a net margin of 15.51% and a return on equity of 9.85%. The company 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 business posted $1.18 earnings per share. The firm's 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, equities analysts expect 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. Investors of record on Friday, August 15th were given a dividend of $1.065 per share. This is a boost from Duke Energy's previous quarterly dividend of $1.05. This represents a $4.26 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.5%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 15th. Duke Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 69.27%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

DUK has been the topic of several research analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on Duke Energy from $131.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $132.00 price target on shares of Duke Energy in a research note on Tuesday, July 1st. Scotiabank lifted their price objective 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $127.00 to $131.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, August 21st. Finally, Raymond James Financial began coverage on Duke Energy in a research report on Friday, June 13th. They set a "market perform" rating for the company. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $131.50.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Duke Energy news, EVP Thomas Preston Jr. Gillespie sold 6,700 shares of the company's 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 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 legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, SVP Bonnie B. Titone sold 2,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $124.38, for a total value of $248,760.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 19,608 shares in the company, 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 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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.