Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) Short Interest Update

Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest during the month of November. As of November 15th, there was short interest totalling 10,490,000 shares, an increase of 10.9% from the October 31st total of 9,460,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 3,360,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.1 days.

Duke Energy Price Performance

Duke Energy stock traded down $1.87 on Monday, reaching $115.18. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 3,419,511 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,066,465. Duke Energy has a twelve month low of $90.09 and a twelve month high of $121.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.55, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a current ratio of 0.70. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $115.18 and its 200 day moving average price is $110.29. The company has a market cap of $88.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.17, a PEG ratio of 3.09 and a beta of 0.47.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 7th. The utilities provider reported $1.62 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.73 by ($0.11). Duke Energy had a net margin of 14.31% and a return on equity of 9.34%. The firm had revenue of $8.16 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.06 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.94 EPS. Duke Energy’s quarterly revenue was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts expect that Duke Energy will post 5.96 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 Monday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be issued a $1.045 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 15th. This represents a $4.18 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.63%. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 76.84%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on DUK shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Duke Energy from $111.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, August 12th. BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $120.00 to $126.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 18th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $135.00 target price on shares of Duke Energy in a report on Thursday, August 29th. Mizuho raised Duke Energy from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their price target for the company from $116.00 to $121.00 in a report on Tuesday, October 15th. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their target price on Duke Energy from $108.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Duke Energy presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $121.69.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Duke Energy by 2.6% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 17,488,176 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,016,846,000 after purchasing an additional 442,302 shares in the last quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC increased its stake in Duke Energy by 11,471.4% during the 3rd quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC now owns 6,777,973 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $781,500,000 after acquiring an additional 6,719,398 shares during the period. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 1.7% during the 2nd quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 2,471,035 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $247,672,000 after purchasing an additional 40,243 shares in the last quarter. Swiss National Bank lifted its position in Duke Energy by 0.3% during the third quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 2,290,641 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $264,111,000 after purchasing an additional 6,500 shares during the period. Finally, Groupama Asset Managment bought a new stake in shares of Duke Energy during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $2,537,000. 65.31% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.