NovaPoint Capital LLC Takes $1.25 Million Position in Duke Energy Corporation $DUK

NovaPoint Capital LLC bought a new position in Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK) in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm bought 10,109 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,251,000.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. WealthShield Partners LLC increased its position in Duke Energy by 0.3% during the second quarter. WealthShield Partners LLC now owns 25,453 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $3,003,000 after acquiring an additional 80 shares during the last quarter. Cypress Wealth Services LLC boosted its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 1.7% during the 3rd quarter. Cypress Wealth Services LLC now owns 5,048 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $625,000 after purchasing an additional 82 shares during the period. Private Wealth Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in Duke Energy by 6.4% during the 2nd quarter. Private Wealth Asset Management LLC now owns 1,408 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $166,000 after purchasing an additional 85 shares during the last quarter. Sentry LLC raised its position in Duke Energy by 4.9% in the 2nd quarter. Sentry LLC now owns 1,831 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $216,000 after purchasing an additional 86 shares during the period. Finally, Centurion Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in Duke Energy by 3.0% in the second quarter. Centurion Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,991 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $353,000 after purchasing an additional 87 shares during the last quarter. 65.31% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently commented on DUK. TD Cowen started coverage on Duke Energy in a research note on Thursday, October 16th. They set a “buy” rating and a $143.00 target price on the stock. Scotiabank upped their price objective on Duke Energy from $137.00 to $146.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 16th. BMO Capital Markets decreased their target price on Duke Energy from $138.00 to $136.00 in a research report on Monday, November 10th. Cowen assumed coverage on shares of Duke Energy in a research note on Wednesday, October 15th. They set a “buy” rating for the company. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of Duke Energy to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 28th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $136.50.

Duke Energy Stock Down 0.2%

NYSE:DUK opened at $117.21 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.54, a current ratio of 0.63 and a quick ratio of 0.40. Duke Energy Corporation has a 1-year low of $105.20 and a 1-year high of $130.03. The company has a 50-day moving average of $121.43 and a 200 day moving average of $121.24. The firm has a market cap of $91.15 billion, a PE ratio of 18.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.49.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 6th. The utilities provider reported $1.81 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.75 by $0.06. Duke Energy had a net margin of 15.76% and a return on equity of 9.98%. The business had revenue of $8.54 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.51 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.62 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 4.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Duke Energy Corporation will post 6.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 14th were issued a dividend of $1.065 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 14th. This represents a $4.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.6%. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 66.98%.

Insider Transactions at Duke Energy

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

About Duke Energy

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.