Stonegate Investment Group LLC Sells 1,397 Shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Stonegate Investment Group LLC trimmed its stake in shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 5.1% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 25,755 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 1,397 shares during the quarter. Stonegate Investment Group LLC’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $2,491,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Town & Country Bank & Trust CO dba First Bankers Trust CO grew its stake in Duke Energy by 3.3% in the 1st quarter. Town & Country Bank & Trust CO dba First Bankers Trust CO now owns 3,390 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $328,000 after buying an additional 109 shares during the last quarter. Breakwater Capital Group grew its position in shares of Duke Energy by 3.9% in the first quarter. Breakwater Capital Group now owns 2,912 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $282,000 after purchasing an additional 109 shares during the last quarter. First Command Advisory Services Inc. increased its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. First Command Advisory Services Inc. now owns 7,949 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $771,000 after purchasing an additional 110 shares during the period. Chemung Canal Trust Co. increased its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Chemung Canal Trust Co. now owns 14,483 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,405,000 after purchasing an additional 113 shares during the period. Finally, Verum Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Duke Energy by 3.1% during the 4th quarter. Verum Partners LLC now owns 3,831 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $372,000 after purchasing an additional 115 shares during the last quarter. 65.31% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Duke Energy

In other Duke Energy news, EVP Louis E. Renjel sold 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the executive vice president now owns 14,213 shares in the company, valued at $1,315,697.41. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 0.14% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Duke Energy Price Performance

Shares of DUK stock traded down $0.47 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $98.26. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 2,488,660 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,968,449. Duke Energy Co. has a fifty-two week low of $83.06 and a fifty-two week high of $100.13. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $95.10 and its 200-day simple moving average is $93.94. The company has a quick ratio of 0.49, a current ratio of 0.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.50. The company has a market capitalization of $75.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.68, a PEG ratio of 2.60 and a beta of 0.46.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 8th. The utilities provider reported $1.51 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.53 by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $7.21 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.24 billion. Duke Energy had a net margin of 9.78% and a return on equity of 8.93%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 1.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.11 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that Duke Energy Co. will post 5.98 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have weighed in on DUK. Bank of America increased their price objective on Duke Energy from $96.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Evercore ISI upgraded shares of Duke Energy from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $90.00 to $108.00 in a research note on Tuesday, January 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company decreased 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 report on Friday, February 9th. Scotiabank dropped their price target on shares of 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. Finally, Barclays increased their price target on Duke Energy from $99.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, April 15th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $100.62.

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.