HighTower Advisors LLC Acquires 13,178 Shares of Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK)

Key Points

• HighTower Advisors LLC raised its stake in Duke Energy by 1.7%, owning approximately 775,715 shares valued at $94.6 million as of its latest SEC filing.
• Duke Energy announced a quarterly dividend increase to $1.065 per share, representing an annualized dividend yield of 3.4% and a payout ratio of 67.97%.
• The company's stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" with an average target price of $129.20 after several analysts revised their price targets and ratings.

HighTower Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK - Free Report) by 1.7% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 775,715 shares of the utilities provider's stock after acquiring an additional 13,178 shares during the period. HighTower Advisors LLC owned 0.10% of Duke Energy worth $94,614,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Toth Financial Advisory Corp boosted its holdings in Duke Energy by 31.6% during the first quarter. Toth Financial Advisory Corp now owns 346 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 83 shares during the last quarter. Reyes Financial Architecture Inc. boosted its holdings in Duke Energy by 4.8% during the first quarter. Reyes Financial Architecture Inc. now owns 1,827 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $223,000 after purchasing an additional 83 shares during the last quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC boosted 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 worth $370,000 after purchasing an additional 84 shares during the last quarter. Lokken Investment Group LLC boosted its holdings in Duke Energy by 3.3% during the first quarter. Lokken Investment Group LLC now owns 2,633 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $321,000 after purchasing an additional 84 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sheets Smith Wealth Management boosted its stake in 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 during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.31% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Duke Energy

In other news, EVP Thomas Preston Jr. Gillespie sold 6,700 shares of Duke Energy stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 sale, the executive vice president directly owned 46,422 shares in the company, valued at $5,768,397.72. The trade was a 12.61% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.14% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have weighed in on DUK shares. Scotiabank boosted their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $120.00 to $128.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 6th. UBS Group reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $127.00 target price (up previously from $124.00) on shares of Duke Energy in a report on Friday, July 11th. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $132.00 price target on shares of Duke Energy in a report on Tuesday, July 1st. Barclays restated an "overweight" rating and set a $131.00 price objective (up previously from $122.00) on shares of Duke Energy in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $125.00 to $124.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, June 18th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $129.80.

Duke Energy Stock Down 1.6%

NYSE DUK traded down $2.00 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $122.26. 4,023,961 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,380,039. Duke Energy Corporation has a 52-week low of $105.20 and a 52-week high of $127.85. The firm has a market cap of $95.07 billion, a PE ratio of 19.88, a PEG ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 0.36. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $119.07 and a 200 day simple moving average of $118.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.55, a current ratio of 0.66 and a quick ratio of 0.42.

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 (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.29 by ($0.04). The business had revenue of $7.51 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $7.07 billion. Duke Energy had a net margin of 15.51% and a return on equity of 9.85%. The company's revenue was up 4.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.18 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Duke Energy Corporation will post 6.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 15th will be paid a $1.065 dividend. This is a boost 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 is Friday, August 15th. Duke Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 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.