Duke Energy Corporation $DUK Shares Sold by United Community Bank

United Community Bank cut its holdings in shares of Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK) by 24.3% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 19,044 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 6,117 shares during the period. United Community Bank’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $2,357,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new position in shares of Duke Energy during the second quarter valued at about $28,000. Mascoma Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in 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 purchasing an additional 87 shares in the last quarter. Access Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Duke Energy during the second quarter worth $31,000. Trifecta Capital Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 2,284.6% during the second quarter. Trifecta Capital Advisors LLC now owns 310 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $37,000 after buying an additional 297 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Meeder Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in Duke Energy in the 3rd quarter worth $39,000. 65.31% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

More Duke Energy News

Here are the key news stories impacting Duke Energy this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Dividend — Duke declared a quarterly dividend of $1.065 per share, supporting yield-seeking investors and steady income appeal. Dividend Announcement
• Positive Sentiment: Higher near-term demand from cold snap — Prolonged low temperatures across the Carolinas and a cold spell in Florida are driving higher residential heating load, which should increase near-term revenue; Duke is also promoting customer assistance programs to manage bills. Higher Energy Use Florida Cold Spell
• Positive Sentiment: Operational resilience — Duke reports restoration of power to ~150,000 North Carolina homes and is mobilizing for an upcoming winter storm; messaging that outage risk is lower for snow vs. ice may limit prolonged service disruptions and related costs. Power Restoration Outage Risk
• Neutral Sentiment: Customer scam warnings — Multiple local outlets report impersonation texts and fake outage messages targeting Duke customers; the company is warning customers and advising precautions. This is a reputational/operational nuisance but not a direct earnings driver. Scam Warning
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst cut — RBC Capital trimmed its target on Duke, which can pressure sentiment and cap near-term upside from analyst-following investors. RBC Target Trim
• Negative Sentiment: Peaker gas-plant consideration — Duke is evaluating a Rockingham County site for potential gas-fired “peaker” plants; this could trigger local opposition, regulatory scrutiny and incremental capital spending. Peaker Plant Site
• Negative Sentiment: Political/PR risk — Coverage questions Duke’s involvement in campaigns opposing municipal moves in Pinellas County, which could heighten regulatory/political risk and negative public attention. Pinellas County Coverage

Duke Energy Trading Up 0.3%

Shares of DUK stock opened at $121.23 on Monday. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $118.17 and a 200-day simple moving average of $121.54. Duke Energy Corporation has a 1-year low of $110.51 and a 1-year high of $130.03. The company has a market cap of $94.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.06, a PEG ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 0.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.54, a current ratio of 0.63 and a quick ratio of 0.40.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 6th. The utilities provider reported $1.81 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.75 by $0.06. Duke Energy had a net margin of 15.76% and a return on equity of 9.98%. The company had revenue of $8.54 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.51 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.62 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts expect that Duke Energy Corporation will post 6.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 13th will be paid a dividend of $1.065 per share. This represents a $4.26 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.5%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 13th. Duke Energy’s payout ratio is 66.98%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on DUK shares. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on Duke Energy from $126.00 to $115.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $136.00 to $126.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, December 11th. Scotiabank lifted their price objective on Duke Energy from $137.00 to $146.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 16th. TD Cowen assumed coverage on Duke Energy in a research note on Thursday, October 16th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $143.00 target price on the stock. Finally, BTIG Research reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $141.00 price target on shares of Duke Energy in a research report on Friday. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $134.50.

Insider Buying and Selling at Duke Energy

In other news, EVP Robert Alexander Glenn sold 8,200 shares of Duke Energy stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $123.80, for a total value of $1,015,160.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 11,367 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,407,234.60. The trade was a 41.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.14% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Duke Energy Profile

Duke Energy Corporation is a U.S.-based electric power holding company headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina. The company’s core business is the generation, transmission and distribution of electricity to residential, commercial and industrial customers. Duke Energy operates a mix of regulated electric utilities and non-regulated energy businesses, providing essential energy infrastructure and services across multiple states.

Its operating activities include owning and operating generation assets across a portfolio that encompasses nuclear, natural gas, coal, hydroelectric and an expanding array of renewable resources, as well as battery storage and grid modernization projects.