Zions Bancorporation National Association UT Makes New Investment in Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK)

Key Points

• Zions Bancorporation National Association UT purchased 64,646 shares of Duke Energy Corporation valued at approximately $7.88 million in the first quarter.
• Duke Energy reported a 1.25 EPS, which missed analysts' expectations of 1.29, but achieved revenue of $7.51 billion, exceeding estimates.
• The company announced an increase in its quarterly dividend to $1.065, with a current yield of 3.4%, signaling strong financial health despite the EPS miss.

Zions Bancorporation National Association UT bought 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 disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 64,646 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $7,885,000.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 2.3% during the 1st 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 in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 14,268.8% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,663,183 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $202,858,000 after acquiring an additional 1,651,608 shares in the last quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 14.8% in the 4th quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC now owns 4,838,705 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $521,322,000 after acquiring an additional 625,008 shares in the last quarter. Zimmer Partners LP raised its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 40.6% in the 4th quarter. Zimmer Partners LP now owns 2,027,600 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $218,454,000 after acquiring an additional 585,600 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp raised its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 6.7% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 8,001,073 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $862,036,000 after acquiring an additional 499,652 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 65.31% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on DUK. Raymond James Financial began coverage on Duke Energy in a research note on Friday, June 13th. They issued a "market perform" rating on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Duke Energy from $127.00 to $138.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. Scotiabank raised their target price on Duke Energy from $120.00 to $128.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 6th. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on Duke Energy from $125.00 to $124.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, June 18th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on Duke Energy from $131.00 to $132.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 6th. Seven 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.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $129.20.

Duke Energy Stock Down 1.0%

NYSE DUK traded down $1.30 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $124.26. 1,677,752 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,595,019. The business's 50-day moving average is $118.40 and its 200-day moving average is $117.70. Duke Energy Corporation has a twelve month low of $105.20 and a twelve month high of $127.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.55, a quick ratio of 0.42 and a current ratio of 0.66. The stock has a market capitalization of $96.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.20, a P/E/G ratio of 3.02 and a beta of 0.36.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The utilities provider reported $1.25 earnings per share 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 firm 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 business posted $1.18 EPS. Duke Energy's revenue for the quarter was up 4.7% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts anticipate 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. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 15th will be issued a dividend of $1.065 per share. This represents a $4.26 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 15th. This is a boost from Duke Energy's previous quarterly dividend of $1.05. Duke Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 67.97%.

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.