Duff & Phelps Investment Management Co. Has $127.81 Million Stock Holdings in Duke Energy Corporation $DUK

Key Points

• Duff & Phelps Investment Management trimmed its Duke Energy stake 1.0% to 1,032,820 shares worth $127.81 million, representing about 0.13% of Duke Energy and 1.4% of Duff & Phelps' portfolio (its 21st largest holding).
• Settlement agreements in North and South Carolina committing to measurable customer savings, plus operational progress such as the opening of Duke’s largest battery storage facility, have reduced regulatory and execution risk for the proposed merger.
• Duke priced an upsized $1.3 billion convertible note due 2029 to refinance 2026 convertibles (lowering near-term refinancing risk but adding dilution risk); the company also declared a quarterly dividend of $1.065 (3.3% yield) and has a consensus analyst target of $137.80.

Duff & Phelps Investment Management Co. trimmed its position in Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK - Free Report) by 1.0% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,032,820 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 10,249 shares during the quarter. Duke Energy makes up 1.4% of Duff & Phelps Investment Management Co.'s portfolio, making the stock its 21st biggest position. Duff & Phelps Investment Management Co. owned 0.13% of Duke Energy worth $127,811,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Pflug Koory LLC grew its position in shares of Duke Energy by 3.0% during the 3rd quarter. Pflug Koory LLC now owns 2,694 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $333,000 after buying an additional 79 shares during the period. WealthShield Partners LLC boosted its stake in Duke Energy by 0.3% in the second quarter. WealthShield Partners LLC now owns 25,453 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $3,003,000 after acquiring an additional 80 shares during the last quarter. Cypress Wealth Services LLC boosted its stake in Duke Energy by 1.7% in the third quarter. Cypress Wealth Services LLC now owns 5,048 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $625,000 after acquiring an additional 82 shares during the last quarter. EWA LLC grew its holdings in Duke Energy by 3.9% during the 3rd quarter. EWA LLC now owns 2,203 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $273,000 after acquiring an additional 82 shares during the period. Finally, Mill Creek Capital Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Duke Energy by 4.6% during the 3rd quarter. Mill Creek Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,854 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $229,000 after acquiring an additional 82 shares during the last quarter. 65.31% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Duke Energy News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: Settlement agreements in North Carolina and South Carolina over the proposed DUKE mergers commit to "measurable, trackable" customer savings (described as hundreds of millions of dollars), reducing regulatory uncertainty around the combination and making the merger more likely to win approval. Duke Energy reaches agreements with North Carolina customer advocates, NC Attorney General's office and others
• Positive Sentiment: Company statements and reporting indicate the merger deal includes explicit customer cost reductions, a concession likely to ease approval and political pushback. That reduces execution risk for the corporate restructuring. Duke Energy’s merger deal includes reducing customer costs
• Positive Sentiment: Operational progress: Duke opened its largest battery storage facility in Knightdale, supporting grid reliability and the company’s clean-energy transition narrative — a strategic positive for long-term capital projects and regulatory positioning. Duke Energy’s largest battery storage facility now open in Knightdale
• Positive Sentiment: Sell-side support: a UBS analyst published a bullish note calling for price appreciation, adding short-term analyst-driven buying interest to the stock. Duke Energy NYSE: DUK Stock Price Expected to Rise, UBS Group Analyst Says
• Positive Sentiment: Community/PR: Duke Energy Foundation announced $500,000 in HERO grants for South Carolina emergency preparedness, helping community relations ahead of regulatory reviews. Duke Energy Foundation offers $500,000 to strengthen emergency preparedness across South Carolina
• Neutral Sentiment: Financing: Duke priced an upsized $1.3B convertible senior note offering (3.00% due 2029) and will use proceeds mainly to refinance 2026 convertibles — this reduces near-term refinancing risk but introduces convertible securities (potential dilution), so market impact is mixed. Duke Energy prices upsized offering of $1.3 billion of 3.000% convertible senior notes due 2029
• Neutral Sentiment: Valuation/market note: Analysts and coverage pieces are updating valuation after the upsized convertible deal and recent share run; the stock has shown multi-month momentum, tempering downside risk while keeping expectations elevated. A Look At Duke Energy (DUK) Valuation After Upsized US$1.3b Convertible Notes Refinancing
• Negative Sentiment: Customer backlash and rate pressure: Thousands of customers and local officials are calling for audits and protesting bill spikes amid Duke’s rate filings; New Bern and other localities are considering or approving small utility rate increases tied to wholesale costs, drawing regulatory scrutiny and political risk. Thousands demand Duke Energy audit after spike in power bills
• Negative Sentiment: Service/reputation issues: Recent outages impacted schools and communities, and local opposition to a proposed gas-plant expansion raises potential permitting, legal and PR headwinds that could delay projects or increase costs. As Duke Energy plans expansion, neighbors fearful of air pollution

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently issued reports on DUK. Morgan Stanley set a $139.00 price target on Duke Energy in a research report on Friday, February 20th. Barclays dropped their price objective on Duke Energy from $135.00 to $127.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 15th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Duke Energy from $115.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on Duke Energy from $141.00 to $142.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 11th. Finally, BTIG Research reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $141.00 price target on shares of Duke Energy in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $137.80.

Duke Energy Price Performance

DUK opened at $130.01 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $101.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.57, a P/E/G ratio of 2.81 and a beta of 0.50. Duke Energy Corporation has a 12 month low of $111.22 and a 12 month high of $132.65. The company has a quick ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 0.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.54. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $123.34 and a 200 day simple moving average of $122.50.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Monday, February 9th. 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 analyst estimates of $7.57 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.66 earnings per share. On average, research analysts expect that Duke Energy Corporation will post 6.33 EPS for the current year.

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Louis E. Renjel sold 6,800 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 in the company, valued at $2,809,633.69. This represents a 23.61% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Regis T. Repko sold 962 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $127.86, for a total transaction of $123,001.32. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 3,896 shares of the company's stock, valued at $498,142.56. This represents a 19.80% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.14% of the stock is currently owned by corporate 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.

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