Colonial Trust Advisors Grows Stake in Duke Energy Corporation $DUK

Colonial Trust Advisors boosted its holdings in shares of Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK) by 2.1% during the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 135,977 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 2,788 shares during the period. Duke Energy comprises about 1.3% of Colonial Trust Advisors’ portfolio, making the stock its 20th biggest holding. Colonial Trust Advisors’ holdings in Duke Energy were worth $16,045,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. WealthShield Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 0.3% in the second quarter. WealthShield Partners LLC now owns 25,453 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $3,003,000 after buying an additional 80 shares in the last quarter. Private Wealth Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in Duke Energy by 6.4% in the 2nd quarter. Private Wealth Asset Management LLC now owns 1,408 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $166,000 after acquiring an additional 85 shares during the last quarter. Roberts Glore & Co. Inc. IL lifted its stake in Duke Energy by 1.8% in the 1st quarter. Roberts Glore & Co. Inc. IL now owns 4,930 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $601,000 after purchasing an additional 86 shares in the last quarter. Sentry LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 4.9% during the 2nd quarter. Sentry LLC now owns 1,831 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $216,000 after purchasing an additional 86 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Centurion Wealth Management LLC grew its position in shares of Duke Energy by 3.0% during the second quarter. Centurion Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,991 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $353,000 after purchasing an additional 87 shares in the last quarter. 65.31% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Duke Energy Price Performance

DUK opened at $123.52 on Friday. The business has a fifty day moving average of $124.52 and a 200 day moving average of $121.02. The stock has a market cap of $96.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.08, a PEG ratio of 3.05 and a beta of 0.45. The company has a quick ratio of 0.42, a current ratio of 0.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.55. Duke Energy Corporation has a 52-week low of $105.20 and a 52-week high of $130.03.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last released its earnings results on Thursday, November 6th. The utilities provider reported $1.81 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.75 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $8.54 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.51 billion. Duke Energy had a return on equity of 9.85% and a net margin of 15.51%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.62 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Duke Energy Corporation will post 6.33 EPS for the current year.

Duke Energy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 14th will be given a $1.065 dividend. This represents a $4.26 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 14th. Duke Energy’s payout ratio is 66.98%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Scotiabank set a $137.00 target price on shares of Duke Energy and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a report on Friday, October 3rd. UBS Group boosted their target price on Duke Energy from $131.00 to $137.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, October 10th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on Duke Energy from $134.00 to $138.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 15th. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $131.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 14th. Finally, Evercore ISI started coverage on shares of Duke Energy in a research note on Monday, October 6th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $143.00 target price on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $138.44.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Robert Alexander Glenn sold 8,200 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $123.80, for a total transaction of $1,015,160.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 11,367 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,407,234.60. This trade represents a 41.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.14% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Duke Energy Company Profile

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.