Stack Financial Management Inc Sells 4,078 Shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Stack Financial Management Inc reduced its position in shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 2.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 199,548 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 4,078 shares during the period. Duke Energy accounts for approximately 2.2% of Stack Financial Management Inc’s holdings, making the stock its 21st biggest position. Stack Financial Management Inc’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $19,364,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its stake in Duke Energy by 4.6% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 23,010,030 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,030,865,000 after purchasing an additional 1,002,157 shares during the last quarter. Morgan Stanley raised its stake in Duke Energy by 4.9% during the 3rd quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 10,468,016 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $923,907,000 after purchasing an additional 492,011 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp raised its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 1.9% in the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 7,918,910 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $698,923,000 after buying an additional 144,612 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 1.6% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 7,672,930 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $656,321,000 after buying an additional 124,114 shares in the last quarter. Finally, FMR LLC raised its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 11.0% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 7,205,441 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $635,952,000 after buying an additional 715,069 shares in the last quarter. 65.31% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Duke Energy Stock Down 1.0 %

DUK stock traded down $0.97 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $98.06. 541,363 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,965,130. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.50, a quick ratio of 0.49 and a current ratio of 0.74. The firm has a market cap of $75.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.72, a P/E/G ratio of 2.63 and a beta of 0.46. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $94.73 and its 200 day simple moving average is $93.67. Duke Energy Co. has a 1-year low of $83.06 and a 1-year high of $100.13.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 8th. The utilities provider reported $1.51 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.53 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $7.21 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.24 billion. Duke Energy had a return on equity of 8.93% and a net margin of 9.78%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 1.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.11 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Duke Energy Co. will post 5.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Louis E. Renjel sold 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.57, for a total value of $277,710.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 14,213 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,315,697.41. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 0.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on DUK shares. Scotiabank dropped 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 note on Monday. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $103.00 to $100.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 9th. Bank of America upped their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $96.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, April 11th. BMO Capital Markets lowered their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $101.00 to $99.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 16th. Finally, Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $99.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, April 15th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $100.62.

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.