Optimize Financial Inc Invests $266,000 in Duke Energy Corporation $DUK

Key Points

• Optimize Financial Inc invested $266,000 in Duke Energy Corporation, acquiring 2,183 shares according to their recent SEC filing.
• Duke Energy reported quarterly earnings of $1.25 EPS, missing estimates by $0.04, but showed a year-over-year revenue increase of 4.7%.
• The company declared a dividend increase to $1.065 per share, reflecting a yield of 3.5%, and set its FY 2025 EPS guidance at $6.170-6.420.

Optimize Financial Inc acquired a new stake in shares of Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 2,183 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $266,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Toth Financial Advisory Corp boosted its position in Duke Energy by 31.6% during the first 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 in the last quarter. Reyes Financial Architecture Inc. boosted its position 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 valued at $223,000 after purchasing an additional 83 shares in the last quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC boosted its position 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 purchasing an additional 84 shares in the last quarter. Lokken Investment Group LLC boosted its position 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 valued at $321,000 after purchasing an additional 84 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sheets Smith Wealth Management raised 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 buying an additional 85 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.31% of the company's stock.

Duke Energy Stock Performance

DUK stock traded down $0.15 during trading on Friday, hitting $121.96. 2,136,379 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,491,651. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $121.42 and its 200 day simple moving average is $119.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.55, a current ratio of 0.66 and a quick ratio of 0.42. The company has a market cap of $94.84 billion, a PE ratio of 19.83, a P/E/G ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 0.39. Duke Energy Corporation has a 1 year low of $105.20 and a 1 year high of $127.85.

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). The company 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 firm's revenue was up 4.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.18 earnings per share. 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 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 15th will be given a $1.065 dividend. 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. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 15th. Duke Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 69.27%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have commented on DUK shares. 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. Morgan Stanley reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Duke Energy in a research note on Thursday, August 21st. Barclays increased their price target on Duke Energy from $122.00 to $131.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 13th. Raymond James Financial started coverage on Duke Energy in a research note on Friday, June 13th. They issued a "market perform" rating for the company. Finally, Scotiabank raised their price objective on Duke Energy from $120.00 to $128.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 6th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Duke Energy currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $130.62.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, SVP Bonnie B. Titone sold 2,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $124.38, for a total value of $248,760.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 19,608 shares in the company, valued at $2,438,843.04. The trade was a 9.26% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Thomas Preston Jr. Gillespie sold 6,700 shares of the business's 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 owned 46,422 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,768,397.72. This trade represents a 12.61% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.14% of the stock is 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.