Claris Financial LLC Invests $778,000 in Duke Energy Corporation $DUK

Claris Financial LLC bought a new stake in Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 6,634 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $778,000.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Mill Creek Capital Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 4.6% in the third quarter. Mill Creek Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,854 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $229,000 after acquiring an additional 82 shares during the last quarter. A4 Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Duke Energy by 3.3% during the fourth quarter. A4 Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,597 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $304,000 after acquiring an additional 82 shares during the last quarter. Elm Partners Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Elm Partners Management LLC now owns 9,254 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,085,000 after acquiring an additional 83 shares during the period. CYBER HORNET ETFs LLC increased its position in Duke Energy by 4.1% in the third quarter. CYBER HORNET ETFs LLC now owns 2,113 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $261,000 after purchasing an additional 83 shares during the period. Finally, Legacy Wealth Managment LLC ID raised its holdings in Duke Energy by 35.0% during the 4th quarter. Legacy Wealth Managment LLC ID now owns 324 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 84 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 65.31% of the company’s stock.

Key Headlines Impacting Duke Energy

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

• Positive Sentiment: Mizuho trimmed its price target on Duke Energy to $135 from $139, but kept an Outperform rating, still implying upside from current levels. Street Insider article
• Positive Sentiment: Investor-focused coverage highlighted Duke Energy as one of several utility stocks offering long-term passive income appeal, reinforcing the stock’s defensive, income-oriented profile. 247WallSt article
• Neutral Sentiment: Duke Energy’s safety demonstration for Pinellas County law enforcement was a routine community/outreach event, with limited direct impact on earnings or valuation. Yahoo News article
• Neutral Sentiment: Power outages and restorations in local service areas, including reports of customers temporarily without electricity, are operational headlines that may create short-term noise but do not by themselves change the investment thesis. MSN article
• Neutral Sentiment: Regulatory and local-government coverage, including a commissioner being barred from a planning vote and Clearwater’s review of Duke Energy property, adds uncertainty around future utility planning and municipal relations, but the near-term stock impact is unclear. Yahoo News article
• Negative Sentiment: Coverage noting that Duke Energy declined more than the market in the latest session may be reinforcing bearish trading momentum in the shares. Yahoo Finance article
• Negative Sentiment: A pro-coal state regulator stepping away from Duke Energy carbon plan decisions could increase uncertainty around the company’s long-term generation strategy and regulatory process. WFAE article

Duke Energy Stock Up 0.1%

Shares of DUK stock opened at $123.84 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $96.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.97 and a beta of 0.39. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $125.59 and a 200-day moving average of $124.06. Duke Energy Corporation has a 12-month low of $113.89 and a 12-month high of $134.49. The company has a quick ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 0.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.45.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 4th. The utilities provider reported $1.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.87 by $0.06. Duke Energy had a net margin of 15.49% and a return on equity of 9.73%. The company had revenue of $9.18 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.44 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.76 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 11.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Duke Energy Corporation will post 6.71 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 16th. Investors of record on Friday, May 15th were paid a $1.065 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 15th. This represents a $4.26 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.4%. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 65.24%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Barclays lowered their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $143.00 to $134.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday. UBS Group cut their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $137.00 to $135.00 in a report on Monday, May 11th. Capitol Sec Mgt lowered shares of Duke Energy from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, April 10th. Truist Financial dropped their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $142.00 to $137.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, May 18th. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their price target on Duke Energy from $141.00 to $132.00 in a research note on Thursday, May 21st. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $138.07.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Duke Energy news, CEO Harry K. Sideris sold 20,000 shares of Duke Energy stock in a transaction on Friday, May 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $124.37, for a total transaction of $2,487,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 96,102 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,952,205.74. The trade was a 17.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Louis E. Renjel sold 3,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $125.15, for a total transaction of $438,025.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 21,415 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,680,087.25. This represents a 14.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.12% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Duke Energy Company 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.