Duke Energy Corporation $DUK Shares Sold by Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A.

Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A. trimmed its holdings in shares of Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK) by 0.5% in the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 17,021 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 91 shares during the quarter. Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A.’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $2,076,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in DUK. Vermillion Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new position in Duke Energy during the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. Wayfinding Financial LLC purchased a new position in shares of Duke Energy during the 1st quarter valued at about $27,000. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC acquired a new position in shares of Duke Energy in the 1st quarter valued at about $27,000. Mattson Financial Services LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Duke Energy in the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Finally, Financial Network Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Duke Energy by 360.0% during the first quarter. Financial Network Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 253 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 198 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.31% of the company’s stock.

Duke Energy Stock Performance

DUK opened at $124.08 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.42, a current ratio of 0.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.55. The company has a market cap of $96.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.18, a PEG ratio of 3.00 and a beta of 0.36. Duke Energy Corporation has a 52-week low of $105.20 and a 52-week high of $127.85. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $119.63 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $118.27.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The utilities provider reported $1.25 EPS 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 company had revenue of $7.51 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.07 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.18 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.7% on a year-over-year basis. Duke Energy has set its FY 2025 guidance at 6.170-6.420 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Duke Energy Corporation will post 6.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 15th will be given a $1.065 dividend. This represents a $4.26 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.4%. This is a boost from Duke Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.05. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 15th. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 69.27%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have issued reports on DUK. Raymond James Financial assumed coverage on Duke Energy in a report on Friday, June 13th. They issued a “market perform” rating for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $127.00 to $131.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday. Citigroup raised their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $130.00 to $142.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. UBS Group reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $127.00 price objective (up previously from $124.00) on shares of Duke Energy in a research report on Friday, July 11th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $131.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 6th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $130.07.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Duke Energy news, SVP Bonnie B. Titone sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $124.38, for a total value of $248,760.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 19,608 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,438,843.04. This trade represents a 9.26% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Thomas Preston Jr. Gillespie sold 6,700 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $124.26, for a total transaction of $832,542.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 46,422 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,768,397.72. The trade was a 12.61% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.14% of the company’s stock.

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.