Dickmeyer Boyce Financial Management Inc. Makes New Investment in Duke Energy Corporation $DUK

Dickmeyer Boyce Financial Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 10,458 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,369,000.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Basso Capital Management L.P. purchased a new stake in shares of Duke Energy in the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Dorato Capital Management bought a new stake in Duke Energy in the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Evolution Wealth Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 1,111.1% during the fourth quarter. Evolution Wealth Management Inc. now owns 218 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Triumph Capital Management grew its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 68.6% during the fourth quarter. Triumph Capital Management now owns 231 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 94 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cornerstone Financial Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Duke Energy in the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Institutional investors own 65.31% of the company’s stock.

Duke Energy Stock Up 1.1%

Shares of Duke Energy stock opened at $129.29 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 0.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.45. Duke Energy Corporation has a 12-month low of $113.89 and a 12-month high of $134.49. The company has a market cap of $100.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.80, a PEG ratio of 2.82 and a beta of 0.38. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $125.11 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $125.75.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last posted its earnings results on Monday, May 4th. The utilities provider reported $1.93 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.87 by $0.06. Duke Energy had a net margin of 15.49% and a return on equity of 9.73%. The firm had revenue of $9.18 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.44 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.76 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 11.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that Duke Energy Corporation will post 6.72 EPS for the current year.

Duke Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 14th will be given a $1.085 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 14th. This represents a $4.34 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.4%. This is an increase from Duke Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.06. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 65.24%.

More Duke Energy News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Duke Energy said data center growth should create billions of dollars in long-term customer savings and support responsible system expansion, reinforcing a constructive demand outlook for the utility. Duke Energy: Data center growth will deliver billions of dollars of customer savings
• Positive Sentiment: Duke Energy received its first advanced gas turbine, which should help it generate electricity more efficiently and support reliability and future capacity needs. Duke Energy receives first advanced gas turbine to generate electricity more efficiently
• Neutral Sentiment: Florida officials are moving toward extending Duke Energy’s service territory for decades, which may improve long-term visibility but does not appear to be an immediate earnings catalyst. As electric bills rise, Florida officials move toward 30 more years with Duke Energy
• Neutral Sentiment: A local outage in east Durham affected more than 2,000 customers during heavy rain, highlighting operational disruptions but likely having limited financial impact. More than 2,000 without power in east Durham amid heavy rain: Duke Energy
• Negative Sentiment: North Carolina’s attorney general said Duke Energy’s reduced rate increase is still too high, keeping regulatory pressure on the company’s pricing plans. NC attorney general says Duke Energy’s lowered rate increase is still too high
• Negative Sentiment: Reports of a stakeholder agreement cutting the residential rate increase to 9.5% suggest Duke may get less pricing relief than it initially sought. Duke Energy-stakeholder agreement pares down residential rate increase to 9.5% for 2 years

Insider Activity at Duke Energy

In other news, CEO Louis E. Renjel sold 3,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $125.15, for a total transaction of $438,025.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 21,415 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,680,087.25. The trade was a 14.05% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Harry K. Sideris sold 20,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $124.37, for a total transaction of $2,487,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 96,102 shares in the company, valued at $11,952,205.74. This represents a 17.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently weighed in on DUK. Wall Street Zen upgraded Duke Energy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, March 28th. Mizuho cut their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $139.00 to $135.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, June 18th. Barclays decreased their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $143.00 to $134.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, June 18th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Duke Energy in a report on Monday, May 4th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $135.00 to $136.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, April 20th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Duke Energy currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $138.62.

Duke Energy Company Profile

Duke Energy Corporation is a U.S.-based electric power holding company headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina. The company’s core business is the generation, transmission and distribution of electricity to residential, commercial and industrial customers. Duke Energy operates a mix of regulated electric utilities and non-regulated energy businesses, providing essential energy infrastructure and services across multiple states.

Its operating activities include owning and operating generation assets across a portfolio that encompasses nuclear, natural gas, coal, hydroelectric and an expanding array of renewable resources, as well as battery storage and grid modernization projects.