Duke Energy Corporation $DUK Shares Purchased by Voya Investment Management LLC

Voya Investment Management LLC increased its position in shares of Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK) by 15.4% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,588,105 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 211,602 shares during the period. Voya Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $196,312,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of DUK. Activest Wealth Management grew its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 98.1% in the 1st 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. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Duke Energy during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Mascoma Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in Duke Energy by 53.7% in the second quarter. Mascoma Wealth Management LLC now owns 249 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 87 shares during the last quarter. Access Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Duke Energy in the second quarter worth approximately $31,000. Finally, Saudi Central Bank acquired a new stake in Duke Energy during the first quarter worth $37,000. 65.31% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Duke Energy

In other Duke Energy news, EVP Robert Alexander Glenn sold 8,200 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $123.80, for a total value of $1,015,160.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 11,367 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,407,234.60. This trade represents a 41.91% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.14% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Duke Energy Price Performance

DUK opened at $117.56 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $122.72 and its 200 day moving average price is $121.17. Duke Energy Corporation has a 12-month low of $105.20 and a 12-month high of $130.03. The firm has a market cap of $91.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.48, a PEG ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.49. The company has a current ratio of 0.63, a quick ratio of 0.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.54.

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

Duke Energy Dividend Announcement

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have commented on DUK shares. Barclays lifted their target price on Duke Energy from $131.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 14th. Scotiabank raised their price objective on Duke Energy from $137.00 to $146.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday. UBS Group reduced their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $135.00 to $126.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. 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, BMO Capital Markets dropped their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $138.00 to $136.00 in a research report on Monday, November 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Duke Energy presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $136.50.

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.