EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC Has $804,000 Stock Holdings in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 64.4% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 8,185 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,206 shares during the quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $804,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in DUK. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC acquired a new position in Duke Energy in the first quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Altshuler Shaham Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Duke Energy during the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Private Wealth Management Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Duke Energy during the 4th quarter worth $26,000. Riverview Trust Co bought a new position in shares of Duke Energy during the 1st quarter worth $30,000. Finally, Pacific Capital Wealth Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of Duke Energy during the 4th quarter worth $31,000. 65.31% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Duke Energy Price Performance

Shares of NYSE DUK traded up $1.32 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $113.92. 4,606,697 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,871,585. The company has a market capitalization of $87.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.09 and a beta of 0.45. The company has a quick ratio of 0.50, a current ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.54. Duke Energy Co. has a 52-week low of $83.06 and a 52-week high of $116.67. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $103.57 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $98.84.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 7th. The utilities provider reported $1.44 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.39 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $7.67 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.31 billion. Duke Energy had a return on equity of 9.25% and a net margin of 10.78%. Duke Energy’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.20 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Duke Energy Co. will post 5.97 EPS for the current year.

Duke Energy Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 16th will be paid a $1.045 dividend. This is a boost from Duke Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.03. This represents a $4.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.67%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 16th. Duke Energy’s payout ratio is 105.03%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Duke Energy news, EVP Julia S. Janson sold 10,000 shares of Duke Energy stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $102.79, for a total value of $1,027,900.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 68,657 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,057,253.03. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, CEO Lynn J. Good sold 15,000 shares of Duke Energy stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 15th. The stock was 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 in the company, valued at approximately $45,190,031.20. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Julia S. Janson sold 10,000 shares of Duke Energy stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $102.79, for a total value of $1,027,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 68,657 shares in the company, valued at $7,057,253.03. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 26,695 shares of company stock valued at $2,750,815 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently weighed in on DUK. BMO Capital Markets cut their price target on Duke Energy from $110.00 to $109.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 11th. Barclays raised their target price on Duke Energy from $99.00 to $102.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 11th. Bank of America raised their target price on Duke Energy from $96.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. Scotiabank cut their target price on Duke Energy from $101.00 to $94.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 22nd. Finally, KeyCorp raised their target price on Duke Energy from $112.00 to $114.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $102.58.

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.