Apexium Financial LP Buys 130 Shares of Duke Energy Corporation $DUK

Apexium Financial LP raised its stake in Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK) by 2.5% during the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 5,368 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 130 shares during the period. Apexium Financial LP’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $633,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Activest Wealth Management grew its position 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 last quarter. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of Duke Energy during the 1st quarter valued at about $27,000. Wayfinding Financial LLC bought a new stake in shares of Duke Energy during the 1st quarter valued at about $27,000. Financial Network Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Duke Energy by 360.0% during the 1st quarter. Financial Network Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 253 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 198 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Saudi Central Bank bought a new stake in shares of Duke Energy during the 1st quarter valued at about $37,000. Institutional investors own 65.31% of the company’s stock.

Duke Energy Stock Up 1.7%

Shares of NYSE:DUK opened at $123.58 on Friday. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $122.58 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $119.61. The firm has a market cap of $96.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.09, a PEG ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 0.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.55, a quick ratio of 0.42 and a current ratio of 0.66. Duke Energy Corporation has a 52-week low of $105.20 and a 52-week high of $127.85.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 5th. The utilities provider reported $1.25 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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 return on equity of 9.85% and a net margin of 15.51%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.18 earnings per share. Duke Energy has set its FY 2025 guidance at 6.170-6.420 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that Duke Energy Corporation will post 6.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Increases Dividend

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently commented on DUK shares. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Duke Energy in a research report on Saturday, September 27th. Raymond James Financial started coverage on Duke Energy in a research report on Friday, June 13th. They set a “market perform” rating on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $132.00 target price on Duke Energy in a research report on Tuesday, July 1st. Jefferies Financial Group lowered Duke Energy from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and cut their price target for the stock from $141.00 to $134.00 in a report on Friday, September 26th. Finally, Scotiabank set a $137.00 price target on Duke Energy and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a report on Friday. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $132.25.

Insider Activity at Duke Energy

In other news, SVP Bonnie B. Titone sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $124.38, for a total value of $248,760.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 19,608 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,438,843.04. This represents a 9.26% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Thomas Preston Jr. Gillespie sold 6,700 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $124.26, for a total value of $832,542.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 46,422 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,768,397.72. This trade represents a 12.61% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.14% of the company’s stock.

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.