Duke Energy Corporation $DUK Shares Sold by Royal Bank of Canada

Royal Bank of Canada trimmed its holdings in shares of Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK) by 1.5% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 8,202,535 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 122,386 shares during the quarter. Royal Bank of Canada’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $961,420,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Rothschild Wealth LLC lifted its position in Duke Energy by 10.1% during the fourth quarter. Rothschild Wealth LLC now owns 2,653 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $311,000 after buying an additional 244 shares in the last quarter. Rakuten Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in Duke Energy by 532.0% during the fourth quarter. Rakuten Investment Management Inc. now owns 102,299 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $12,022,000 after buying an additional 86,113 shares in the last quarter. L2 Asset Management LLC lifted its position in Duke Energy by 6.7% during the fourth quarter. L2 Asset Management LLC now owns 4,146 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $486,000 after buying an additional 262 shares in the last quarter. Bluedoor Private Wealth LLC acquired a new position in Duke Energy during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $208,000. Finally, 71 West Capital Partners acquired a new position in Duke Energy during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $330,000. 65.31% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have weighed in on DUK. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $127.00 to $143.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 7th. Evercore lifted their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $139.00 to $140.00 in a research note on Monday, May 11th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Duke Energy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, March 28th. Capitol Sec Mgt lowered shares of Duke Energy from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, April 10th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Duke Energy in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Nine investment 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, Duke Energy has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $138.93.

Trending Headlines about Duke Energy

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

• Positive Sentiment: Duke Energy continues to draw investor interest as a reliable income stock, with articles highlighting its century-long record of quarterly dividends and its appeal as a defensive, “safe-haven” utility in a lower-rate environment. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: The Duke Energy Foundation announced additional America250 grants in Florida, reinforcing the company’s community profile and ESG/charitable reputation. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: The Foundation also completed its broader America250 grantmaking program, which may modestly support Duke Energy’s public image across its service territory. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Coverage of Duke’s resource planning and clean-energy strategy suggests ongoing debate over future generation mix and capital spending, but it does not appear to be a near-term catalyst on its own. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Commentary about Duke’s rate case and gas-plant plans reflects the company’s ongoing regulatory process, which can affect returns over time but is not yet a confirmed earnings hit. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: A report saying North Carolina’s consumer advocate believes Duke is overcharging customers adds regulatory and political risk, which can weigh on sentiment if it leads to tougher oversight or rate pressure. Article Title

Duke Energy Stock Up 0.5%

Shares of NYSE:DUK opened at $125.92 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 0.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.45. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $125.89 and a 200 day simple moving average of $124.06. The firm has a market cap of $98.16 billion, a PE ratio of 19.28 and a beta of 0.39. Duke Energy Corporation has a 12-month low of $113.66 and a 12-month high of $134.49.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 4th. The utilities provider reported $1.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.87 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $9.18 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.44 billion. Duke Energy had a net margin of 15.49% and a return on equity of 9.73%. The business’s revenue was up 11.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.76 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Duke Energy Corporation will post 6.71 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Dividend Announcement

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Duke Energy news, CEO Louis E. Renjel sold 3,500 shares of Duke Energy 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 completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 21,415 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,680,087.25. The trade was a 14.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed 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 directly owned 96,102 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,952,205.74. This represents a 17.23% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.12% of the stock is currently 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.