Lynn J. Good Sells 15,000 Shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) Stock

Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) CEO Lynn J. Good sold 15,000 shares of Duke Energy 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 directly owns 437,464 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $45,190,031.20. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website.

Duke Energy Stock Performance

Shares of DUK stock opened at $103.89 on Friday. The company’s 50 day moving average is $97.58 and its 200 day moving average is $95.12. The company has a quick ratio of 0.50, a current ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.54. The firm has a market cap of $80.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.10, a PEG ratio of 2.76 and a beta of 0.45. Duke Energy Co. has a 52-week low of $83.06 and a 52-week high of $103.93.

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

Duke Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 17th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 17th will be issued a $1.025 dividend. This represents a $4.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.95%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 16th. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 103.02%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have issued reports on the company. Scotiabank dropped their target price on 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. Mizuho increased their target price on Duke Energy from $89.00 to $99.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, April 5th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $104.00 to $108.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 8th. Bank of America raised their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $96.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $103.00 to $100.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 9th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $101.31.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Panagora Asset Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Duke Energy by 3.5% during the third quarter. Panagora Asset Management Inc. now owns 47,118 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $4,159,000 after purchasing an additional 1,613 shares in the last quarter. TBH Global Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in Duke Energy in the third quarter worth about $492,000. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC grew its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 11.0% during the third quarter. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC now owns 154,307 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $13,619,000 after acquiring an additional 15,239 shares during the last quarter. New Mexico Educational Retirement Board increased its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 7.2% during the third quarter. New Mexico Educational Retirement Board now owns 40,060 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $3,536,000 after acquiring an additional 2,700 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Tower Bridge Advisors raised its position in shares of Duke Energy by 2.0% in the 3rd quarter. Tower Bridge Advisors now owns 16,480 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,455,000 after purchasing an additional 318 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.31% of the company’s stock.

Duke Energy Company 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.