Vanguard Group Inc. Raises Position in Duke Energy Corporation $DUK

Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK) by 0.8% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 76,301,165 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 584,382 shares during the quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. owned about 9.81% of Duke Energy worth $9,442,269,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of DUK. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 11.6% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 6,754 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $728,000 after acquiring an additional 700 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 19.6% during the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 23,162 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,825,000 after acquiring an additional 3,797 shares during the last quarter. VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al bought a new position in Duke Energy in the 2nd quarter valued at $11,080,000. West Tower Group LLC purchased a new stake in Duke Energy in the second quarter worth $401,000. Finally, Balboa Wealth Partners lifted its position in shares of Duke Energy by 1.9% during the second quarter. Balboa Wealth Partners now owns 9,618 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,135,000 after purchasing an additional 179 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 65.31% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently commented on DUK shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $136.00 to $126.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, December 11th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “underperform” rating and set a $130.00 target price on shares of Duke Energy in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on Duke Energy from $126.00 to $115.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 20th. UBS Group dropped their price objective on Duke Energy from $135.00 to $126.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, December 17th. Finally, Scotiabank lifted their target price on Duke Energy from $137.00 to $146.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 16th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $134.19.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Duke Energy news, CEO Louis E. Renjel sold 6,800 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $127.67, for a total value of $868,156.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 22,007 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,809,633.69. This trade represents a 23.61% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Robert Alexander Glenn sold 8,200 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $123.80, for a total transaction of $1,015,160.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 11,367 shares in the company, valued at $1,407,234.60. This trade represents a 41.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Corporate insiders own 0.14% of the company’s stock.

Duke Energy Trading Up 1.6%

NYSE DUK opened at $128.14 on Tuesday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $118.93 and a 200 day moving average price of $121.87. The firm has a market cap of $99.65 billion, a PE ratio of 20.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.51. The company has a quick ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 0.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.54. Duke Energy Corporation has a 52 week low of $110.51 and a 52 week high of $130.03.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 10th. The utilities provider reported $1.50 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.49 by $0.01. Duke Energy had a return on equity of 9.66% and a net margin of 15.41%.The firm had revenue of $7.94 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.57 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.66 EPS. Duke Energy has set its FY 2026 guidance at 6.550-6.800 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Duke Energy Corporation will post 6.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 13th will be given a dividend of $1.065 per share. This represents a $4.26 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 13th. Duke Energy’s payout ratio is currently 67.41%.

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.