Occidental Asset Management LLC Acquires 18,051 Shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Occidental Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 140.9% in the first quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 30,858 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 18,051 shares during the quarter. Occidental Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $2,984,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of DUK. First Command Advisory Services Inc. lifted its position in Duke Energy by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. First Command Advisory Services Inc. now owns 7,949 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $771,000 after acquiring an additional 110 shares during the last quarter. Chemung Canal Trust Co. grew its holdings in Duke Energy by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Chemung Canal Trust Co. now owns 14,483 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,405,000 after buying an additional 113 shares in the last quarter. Verum Partners LLC increased its position in Duke Energy by 3.1% during the 4th quarter. Verum Partners LLC now owns 3,831 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $372,000 after buying an additional 115 shares during the period. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. boosted its position in shares of Duke Energy by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. now owns 27,481 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,667,000 after acquiring an additional 115 shares during the period. Finally, Venturi Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 10.1% in the fourth quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,266 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $123,000 after acquiring an additional 116 shares in the last quarter. 65.31% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Duke Energy

In related news, CEO Lynn J. Good sold 15,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.30, for a total value of $1,549,500.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 437,464 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $45,190,031.20. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, CEO Lynn J. Good sold 15,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $103.30, for a total transaction of $1,549,500.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 437,464 shares in the company, valued at approximately $45,190,031.20. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director E Marie Mckee sold 1,695 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $102.31, for a total transaction of $173,415.45. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 4 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $409.24. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 26,695 shares of company stock valued at $2,750,815. Corporate insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Duke Energy Trading Down 0.4 %

Shares of Duke Energy stock traded down $0.36 on Friday, reaching $100.23. 3,898,744 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,576,126. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $101.37 and its two-hundred day moving average is $97.43. The company has a market capitalization of $77.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.76 and a beta of 0.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.54, a quick ratio of 0.50 and a current ratio of 0.78. Duke Energy Co. has a 52 week low of $83.06 and a 52 week high of $104.87.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 7th. The utilities provider reported $1.44 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.39 by $0.05. Duke Energy had a return on equity of 9.25% and a net margin of 10.78%. The firm had revenue of $7.67 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.31 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.20 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 5.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that Duke Energy Co. will post 5.97 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 17th. Investors of record on Friday, May 17th were issued a dividend of $1.025 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 16th. This represents a $4.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.09%. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 103.02%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on DUK shares. Bank of America lifted their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $96.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. KeyCorp boosted their price target on Duke Energy from $107.00 to $112.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, May 20th. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $108.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, May 20th. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $103.00 to $98.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, June 24th. Finally, Scotiabank lowered their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $101.00 to $94.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 22nd. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $102.33.

Duke Energy 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.