Peak Financial Advisors LLC Purchases New Stake in Duke Energy Corporation $DUK

Key Points

• Peak Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Duke Energy Corporation, purchasing 3,821 shares valued at approximately $451,000 during Q2 2023.
• Duke Energy recently announced a quarterly dividend increase, now paying $1.065 per share, up from $1.05, showing a strong annualized yield of 3.5%.
• Analysts have a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" for Duke Energy, with an average target price set at $130.62, indicating positive sentiment towards the stock's future performance.

Peak Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK - Free Report) during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 3,821 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $451,000.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Andrew Hill Investment Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in 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 valued at $4,606,000 after acquiring an additional 29,153 shares in the last quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in Duke Energy by 7.7% in the first 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 in the last quarter. Pinnacle Financial Partners Inc raised its holdings in Duke Energy by 9.9% in the first quarter. Pinnacle Financial Partners Inc now owns 127,419 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $14,451,000 after acquiring an additional 11,445 shares in the last quarter. Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc. raised its holdings in Duke Energy by 8.1% in the first quarter. Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc. now owns 51,354 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $6,264,000 after acquiring an additional 3,837 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in 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 valued at $1,055,087,000 after acquiring an additional 93,699 shares in the last quarter. 65.31% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

DUK has been the subject of several recent research reports. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $132.00 target price on shares of Duke Energy in a research note on Tuesday, July 1st. Morgan Stanley reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Duke Energy in a research note on Thursday, August 21st. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of 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 initiated coverage on shares of Duke Energy in a research note on Friday, June 13th. They set a "market perform" rating for the company. Finally, UBS Group reiterated a "neutral" rating and set a $127.00 target price (up previously from $124.00) on shares of Duke Energy in a research note on Friday, July 11th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $130.62.

Duke Energy Stock Down 0.1%

Duke Energy stock opened at $121.96 on Friday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $121.42 and a 200-day simple moving average of $119.16. The firm has a market capitalization of $94.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.83, a P/E/G ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 0.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.55, a quick ratio of 0.42 and a current ratio of 0.66. Duke Energy Corporation has a one year low of $105.20 and a one year high of $127.85.

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 the consensus estimate of $1.29 by ($0.04). The firm had revenue of $7.51 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.07 billion. Duke Energy had a return on equity of 9.85% and a net margin of 15.51%.The firm's revenue was up 4.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.18 EPS. Duke Energy has set its FY 2025 guidance at 6.170-6.420 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect 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 will be paid on Tuesday, September 16th. Investors of record on Friday, August 15th will be given a $1.065 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 15th. This represents a $4.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.5%. This is a boost from Duke Energy's previous quarterly dividend of $1.05. Duke Energy's payout ratio is currently 69.27%.

Insider Transactions at Duke Energy

In related news, SVP Bonnie B. Titone sold 2,000 shares of the 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 completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 19,608 shares in the company, valued at $2,438,843.04. This represents a 9.26% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Thomas Preston Jr. Gillespie sold 6,700 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the executive vice president owned 46,422 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,768,397.72. This 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.

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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding DUK? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK - Free Report).

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.