Duke Energy Corporation $DUK Stock: Maryland State Retirement & Pension System Raises Stake

Maryland State Retirement & Pension System lifted its stake in shares of Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK) by 16.0% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 48,227 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 6,645 shares during the quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $5,498,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of DUK. Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new stake in Duke Energy in the second quarter valued at $605,680,000. Janus Henderson Group PLC raised its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 5,254.4% during the first quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 2,735,816 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $358,227,000 after purchasing an additional 2,684,721 shares during the period. Cullen Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Duke Energy during the 2nd quarter worth about $244,731,000. Great Lakes Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Duke Energy during the 2nd quarter worth about $100,586,000. Finally, VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al bought a new position in shares of Duke Energy during the 2nd quarter worth about $88,657,000. Institutional investors own 65.31% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently weighed in on DUK. HSBC began coverage on Duke Energy in a research note on Thursday, October 22nd. They set a “hold” rating and a $123.00 price target on the stock. Scotiabank reduced their price objective on Duke Energy from $146.00 to $131.00 in a research note on Wednesday, September 30th. Mizuho set a $136.00 price objective on Duke Energy in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. KeyCorp lowered their target price on Duke Energy from $139.00 to $128.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, October 13th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “hold” rating and issued a $121.00 target price on shares of Duke Energy in a report on Monday, October 12th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Duke Energy currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $132.19.

Duke Energy Stock Performance

Shares of DUK stock opened at $128.59 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $120.51 and a 200-day moving average of $124.71. The company has a market cap of $100.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.80, a P/E/G ratio of 3.00 and a beta of 0.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.49, a current ratio of 0.68 and a quick ratio of 0.44. Duke Energy Corporation has a one year low of $112.40 and a one year high of $134.49.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 5th. The utilities provider reported $1.99 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.86 by $0.13. Duke Energy had a net margin of 15.94% and a return on equity of 9.82%. The business had revenue of $9.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.91 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.81 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts forecast that Duke Energy Corporation will post 6.73 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 13th will be paid a $1.0850 dividend. This represents a $4.34 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.4%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 13th. Duke Energy’s payout ratio is presently 63.45%.

Top Duke Energy Stories

These are some of the DUK stories that stood out recently:

• Positive Sentiment: North Carolina’s removal of a key climate target has reportedly benefited Duke financially this year, potentially easing constraints on its generation plans. The policy shift may also invite continued scrutiny from climate advocates. North Carolina law and Duke Energy
• Neutral Sentiment: Lenders consented to an internal merger between Duke Energy Progress and Duke Energy Carolinas, while the company retained its $10 billion revolving credit facility. This supports financing flexibility but appears primarily administrative. Duke Energy secures merger credit consent
• Negative Sentiment: Duke’s push for additional North Carolina natural-gas plants to serve growing data-center demand is facing opposition, raising potential political, permitting and planning risks. Opposition to Duke Energy’s North Carolina gas-plant plans

Insider Buying and Selling at Duke Energy

In other news, EVP Bonnie Titone sold 2,900 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $128.00, for a total value of $371,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 26,111 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,342,208. This represents a 10.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 0.12% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Duke Energy Profile

Duke Energy is a U.S. energy company focused primarily on regulated electric utilities and natural gas distribution. Its businesses generate, transmit and distribute electricity, and provide natural gas service to residential, commercial and industrial customers. The company serves electric customers in North Carolina, South Carolina, Florida, Indiana, Ohio and Kentucky. Its natural gas distribution operations serve customers in several states, including North Carolina, South Carolina, Ohio, Kentucky and Tennessee.