Duke Energy Corporation $DUK Position Increased by Stephens Inc. AR

Stephens Inc. AR raised its stake in Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK) by 12.5% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 345,684 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 38,505 shares during the period. Stephens Inc. AR’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $45,316,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Duke Energy by 2.6% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 78,258,757 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $9,172,709,000 after purchasing an additional 1,957,592 shares during the period. Amundi raised its holdings in Duke Energy by 56.9% during the 4th quarter. Amundi now owns 2,662,460 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $312,067,000 after buying an additional 965,808 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its holdings in Duke Energy by 13.1% during the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 8,236,893 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $965,446,000 after buying an additional 954,907 shares during the period. Milford Funds Ltd. purchased a new stake in Duke Energy during the fourth quarter valued at about $97,905,000. Finally, Cohen & Steers Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 83.3% in the fourth quarter. Cohen & Steers Inc. now owns 1,711,445 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $200,598,000 after buying an additional 777,878 shares during the period. 65.31% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Duke Energy Stock Performance

Shares of DUK opened at $129.44 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $100.91 billion, a PE ratio of 19.82 and a beta of 0.38. 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 company’s 50 day moving average price is $125.06 and its 200 day moving average price is $124.84. Duke Energy Corporation has a 52 week low of $113.89 and a 52 week high of $134.49.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last issued its earnings results 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 during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.44 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.76 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.3% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts expect that Duke Energy Corporation will post 6.71 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 15th were paid a $1.065 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 15th. This represents a $4.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.3%. Duke Energy’s payout ratio is 65.24%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Harry K. Sideris sold 20,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $124.37, for a total value of $2,487,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 96,102 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,952,205.74. The trade was a 17.23% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Louis E. Renjel sold 3,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 21,415 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,680,087.25. The trade was a 14.05% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Corporate insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on DUK. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Duke Energy in a report on Monday, May 4th. BMO Capital Markets cut their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $139.00 to $138.00 in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Capitol Sec Mgt lowered Duke Energy from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, April 10th. Mizuho decreased their target price on Duke Energy from $139.00 to $135.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, June 18th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price target on 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 issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $138.33.

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.