Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) Stock Sees Unusually High Call Option Buying

Key Points

• Investors bought 16,318 Duke Energy call options on Thursday—about 411% above the typical daily volume of 3,196.
• Duke Energy reported quarterly EPS of $1.99, beating the $1.86 consensus, while revenue rose 6.6% year over year.
• Analysts have a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $132.19; the company also declared a quarterly dividend of $1.085 per share, equivalent to a 3.3% yield.

Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK - Get Free Report) was the recipient of some unusual options trading on Thursday. Investors bought 16,318 call options on the company. This represents an increase of approximately 411% compared to the typical daily volume of 3,196 call options.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently commented on DUK shares. BTIG Research reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Duke Energy in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. Weiss Ratings reissued a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Duke Energy in a research note on Thursday, October 29th. Barclays reduced their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $132.00 to $124.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 9th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Duke Energy from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, October 17th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $127.00 to $128.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 21st. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have given 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 $132.19.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Duke Energy news, EVP Bonnie Titone sold 2,900 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, October 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $128.00, for a total transaction of $371,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 26,111 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,342,208. This trade represents a 10.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders own 0.12% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Duke Energy

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Lido Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Duke Energy by 5.6% during the 3rd quarter. Lido Advisors LLC now owns 101,238 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $11,542,000 after buying an additional 5,332 shares in the last quarter. Keybank National Association OH boosted its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 0.4% in the third quarter. Keybank National Association OH now owns 431,411 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $49,185,000 after acquiring an additional 1,530 shares in the last quarter. Csenge Advisory Group increased its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 1.6% during the third quarter. Csenge Advisory Group now owns 56,128 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $6,399,000 after acquiring an additional 873 shares during the period. Cassia Capital Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 6.7% during the third quarter. Cassia Capital Partners LLC now owns 13,717 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,564,000 after acquiring an additional 861 shares during the period. Finally, Cpwa LLC raised its holdings in Duke Energy by 5.6% during the third quarter. Cpwa LLC now owns 2,925 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $344,000 after purchasing an additional 155 shares in the last quarter. 65.31% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Duke Energy News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Duke Energy this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Duke Energy earned $1.99 per share, above analysts’ estimates of roughly $1.86–$1.87 and up from $1.81 a year earlier. Revenue rose 6.6% year over year and beat expectations by 2.33%. The company cited 2% retail load growth, infrastructure investment recovery and favorable weather as key drivers. Article: Duke Energy Q3 Earnings Surpass Estimates on 2% Retail Load Growth
• Neutral Sentiment: Duke Energy Florida customers are expected to see lower electricity rates in 2027 after regulators approved the company’s request. This is favorable for customers, but the reports do not clarify the effect on Duke’s earnings. Article: Duke Energy Florida customers to see lower rates in 2027

Duke Energy Trading Up 0.9%

NYSE:DUK traded up $1.19 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $130.78. The company's stock had a trading volume of 3,233,897 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,990,539. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.47, a current ratio of 0.66 and a quick ratio of 0.43. The stock has a market cap of $101.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.64, a P/E/G ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 0.33. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $119.53 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $124.41. Duke Energy has a twelve month low of $112.40 and a twelve month high of $134.49.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 5th. The utilities provider reported $1.99 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.86 by $0.13. Duke Energy had a net margin of 15.78% and a return on equity of 9.78%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 6.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.81 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Duke Energy will post 6.72 EPS for the current year.

Duke Energy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 13th will be paid a dividend of $1.0850 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 13th. This represents a $4.34 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.3%. Duke Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 65.17%.

About Duke Energy

Duke Energy Corporation is an energy holding company that provides regulated electric and natural gas utility services in the United States. Its electric utilities generate, transmit, distribute and sell electricity to residential, commercial, industrial and other customers. The company's generation portfolio includes nuclear, natural gas, coal, hydroelectric and renewable energy resources.

Duke Energy serves customers primarily in North Carolina, South Carolina, Florida, Indiana, Ohio and Kentucky.

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