Avantax Advisory Services Inc. Increases Holdings in Duke Energy Corporation $DUK

Avantax Advisory Services Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK) by 3.2% during the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 111,040 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 3,447 shares during the period. Avantax Advisory Services Inc.’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $13,103,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of DUK. Activest Wealth Management increased 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 worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 105 shares during the last quarter. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Duke Energy in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Duke Energy during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $28,000. Mascoma Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of Duke Energy by 53.7% during the 2nd quarter. Mascoma Wealth Management LLC now owns 249 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 87 shares during the period. Finally, Financial Network Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Duke Energy by 360.0% in the first quarter. Financial Network Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 253 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 198 shares during the last quarter. 65.31% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Bonnie B. Titone sold 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $124.38, for a total transaction of $248,760.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 19,608 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,438,843.04. The trade was a 9.26% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.14% of the company’s stock.

Duke Energy Price Performance

Shares of DUK opened at $122.74 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $95.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.96, a PEG ratio of 3.05 and a beta of 0.45. Duke Energy Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $105.20 and a fifty-two week high of $130.03. The company has a quick ratio of 0.42, a current ratio of 0.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.55. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $124.17 and its 200 day moving average price is $120.91.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 6th. The utilities provider reported $1.81 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.75 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $8.54 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.51 billion. Duke Energy had a net margin of 15.51% and a return on equity of 9.85%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 4.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.62 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that Duke Energy Corporation will post 6.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 14th will be given a $1.065 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 14th. This represents a $4.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.5%. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 66.98%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have issued reports on DUK. Cowen assumed coverage on Duke Energy in a research note on Wednesday, October 15th. They set a “buy” rating for the company. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Duke Energy in a report on Thursday. Mizuho boosted their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $132.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, October 27th. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of Duke Energy to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 28th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $131.00 to $136.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 14th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have given a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Duke Energy has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $138.63.

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.