Decker Wealth Management LLC Makes New $717,000 Investment in Duke Energy Corporation $DUK

Decker Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK) during the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund bought 5,476 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $717,000.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Sharp Wealth Advisory LLC grew its position in Duke Energy by 4.5% during the 1st quarter. Sharp Wealth Advisory LLC now owns 1,876 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $246,000 after purchasing an additional 81 shares in the last quarter. Absher Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 2.3% in the first quarter. Absher Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,648 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $478,000 after purchasing an additional 81 shares in the last quarter. A4 Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 3.3% in the fourth quarter. A4 Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,597 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $304,000 after purchasing an additional 82 shares in the last quarter. Elm Partners Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Duke Energy by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. Elm Partners Management LLC now owns 9,254 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,085,000 after buying an additional 83 shares during the period. Finally, CYBER HORNET ETFs LLC grew its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 4.1% during the third quarter. CYBER HORNET ETFs LLC now owns 2,113 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $261,000 after buying an additional 83 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.31% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Duke Energy from $135.00 to $136.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Capitol Sec Mgt lowered Duke Energy from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, April 10th. Mizuho lowered their target price on Duke Energy from $139.00 to $135.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, June 18th. BTIG Research reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $139.00 target price on shares of Duke Energy in a report on Tuesday, June 2nd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $143.00 to $138.00 in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $138.73.

Duke Energy News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: Truist raised its price target on Duke Energy to $138 and reiterated a Buy rating, signaling confidence in the utility’s earnings outlook and suggesting meaningful upside from current levels. Benzinga report on Truist rating update
• Positive Sentiment: JPMorgan also lifted its price target to $141, even while keeping a Neutral rating, which still reflects expectations for solid longer-term value creation. Benzinga report on JPMorgan target increase
• Positive Sentiment: Recent commentary highlighted Duke Energy as one of the utilities best positioned for long-term growth thanks to its strong customer base and large capital expenditure program, with analysts pointing to contracted load and new demand from data centers as supportive of future earnings. Seeking Alpha article
• Neutral Sentiment: Duke Energy is expected to report second-quarter results next month, and analysts are looking for a modest earnings increase, keeping attention on whether the company can deliver on its growth plans. Barchart article
• Neutral Sentiment: Local coverage suggests Clearwater may renew its long-term electricity contract with Duke Energy, which would help preserve customer relationships and support revenue stability. Yahoo Finance article
• Negative Sentiment: North Carolina’s attorney general is challenging proposed Duke Energy Progress rate increases, adding another regulatory hurdle that could limit future pricing power and earnings growth. MSN article
• Negative Sentiment: Additional reports say AG Jeff Jackson is seeking to block nearly $1 billion in Duke Energy rate hikes over the next two years, reinforcing investor concerns about regulatory pushback on returns. Yahoo News article

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Louis E. Renjel sold 3,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $125.15, for a total value of $438,025.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 21,415 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,680,087.25. This trade represents a 14.05% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Harry K. Sideris sold 20,000 shares of Duke Energy stock in a transaction on Friday, May 8th. The stock was 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 owned 96,102 shares in the company, valued at $11,952,205.74. This trade represents a 17.23% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 0.12% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Duke Energy Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE DUK opened at $125.04 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.45, a quick ratio of 0.44 and a current ratio of 0.66. The firm has a market cap of $97.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.15, a P/E/G ratio of 2.75 and a beta of 0.38. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $124.89 and its 200-day simple moving average is $125.48. Duke Energy Corporation has a 52 week low of $113.89 and a 52 week high of $134.49.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last posted its earnings results on Monday, May 4th. The utilities provider reported $1.93 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.87 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $9.18 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.44 billion. Duke Energy had a return on equity of 9.73% and a net margin of 15.49%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.76 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Duke Energy Corporation will post 6.72 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 14th will be given a $1.085 dividend. This is a positive change from Duke Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.06. This represents a $4.34 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 14th. Duke Energy’s payout ratio is 65.24%.

About Duke Energy

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.