Victrix Investment Advisors Buys 389 Shares of Duke Energy Corporation $DUK

Victrix Investment Advisors boosted its stake in shares of Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK) by 3.1% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 12,756 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 389 shares during the quarter. Victrix Investment Advisors’ holdings in Duke Energy were worth $1,505,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Activest Wealth Management grew its position in Duke Energy by 98.1% during the first quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 212 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 105 shares during the period. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC bought a new position in Duke Energy during the first quarter valued at about $27,000. Wayfinding Financial LLC bought a new position in Duke Energy during the first quarter valued at about $27,000. Financial Network Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position 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 purchasing an additional 198 shares during the period. Finally, American National Bank & Trust purchased a new position in shares of Duke Energy in the first quarter worth about $36,000. Institutional investors own 65.31% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently weighed in on DUK. BMO Capital Markets lifted 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. UBS Group reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $127.00 target price (up previously from $124.00) on shares of Duke Energy in a research note on Friday, July 11th. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $122.00 to $131.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 13th. Scotiabank lifted their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $120.00 to $128.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 6th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $127.00 to $131.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 21st. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $131.50.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Thomas Preston Jr. Gillespie sold 6,700 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $124.26, for a total value 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. This trade represents a 12.61% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Bonnie B. Titone sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $124.38, for a total transaction of $248,760.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 19,608 shares in the company, valued at $2,438,843.04. This represents a 9.26% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.14% of the company’s stock.

Duke Energy Price Performance

DUK stock opened at $123.71 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $122.41 and a 200-day moving average of $119.57. The firm has a market capitalization of $96.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.96 and a beta of 0.39. The company has a current ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 0.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.55. Duke Energy Corporation has a 12 month low of $105.20 and a 12 month high of $127.85.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The utilities provider reported $1.25 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.29 by ($0.04). The company had revenue of $7.51 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.07 billion. Duke Energy had a net margin of 15.51% and a return on equity of 9.85%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.18 earnings per share. Duke Energy has set its FY 2025 guidance at 6.170-6.420 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Duke Energy Corporation will post 6.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 16th. Investors of record on Friday, August 15th were paid a $1.065 dividend. This is an increase from Duke Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.05. This represents a $4.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 15th. Duke Energy’s payout ratio is 69.27%.

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.