MetLife Investment Management LLC Has $24.57 Million Stock Holdings in Duke Energy Corporation $DUK

Key Points

• MetLife Investment Management LLC reduced its stake in Duke Energy by 1.5%, selling 2,972 shares, resulting in a current holding of 201,473 shares valued at approximately $24.57 million.
• Duke Energy recently reported earnings of $1.25 per share for the last quarter, slightly below the consensus estimate of $1.29, while its revenue increased by 4.7% year-over-year.
• The company announced an increase in its quarterly dividend from $1.05 to $1.065, which reflects an annualized amount of $4.26 and a dividend yield of 3.4%.

MetLife Investment Management LLC lessened its holdings in shares of Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK - Free Report) by 1.5% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 201,473 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 2,972 shares during the period. MetLife Investment Management LLC's holdings in Duke Energy were worth $24,574,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of DUK. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its position in Duke Energy by 11.6% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 6,754 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $728,000 after acquiring an additional 700 shares in the last quarter. Hancock Whitney Corp raised its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 4.8% in the 4th quarter. Hancock Whitney Corp now owns 4,368 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $471,000 after purchasing an additional 199 shares during the period. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 21,557 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $2,323,000 after purchasing an additional 223 shares in the last quarter. Capital Analysts LLC boosted its position in shares of Duke Energy by 16.9% during the fourth quarter. Capital Analysts LLC now owns 5,683 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $612,000 after buying an additional 821 shares during the period. Finally, Aquatic Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Duke Energy during the fourth quarter worth about $4,109,000. 65.31% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other Duke Energy news, EVP Thomas Preston Jr. Gillespie sold 6,700 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $124.26, for a total transaction of $832,542.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 46,422 shares in the company, valued at $5,768,397.72. This trade represents a 12.61% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, SVP Bonnie B. Titone sold 2,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $124.38, for a total transaction of $248,760.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 19,608 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,438,843.04. The trade was a 9.26% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.14% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Duke Energy Stock Performance

Shares of DUK traded down $1.18 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $122.50. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,496,426 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,558,523. The company has a current ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 0.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.55. The stock has a market cap of $95.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.92, a PEG ratio of 2.97 and a beta of 0.36. Duke Energy Corporation has a 1-year low of $105.20 and a 1-year high of $127.85. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $120.29 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $118.54.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The utilities provider reported $1.25 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.29 by ($0.04). Duke Energy had a net margin of 15.51% and a return on equity of 9.85%. The business had revenue of $7.51 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.07 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.18 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 4.7% on a year-over-year basis. Duke Energy has set its FY 2025 guidance at 6.170-6.420 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Duke Energy Corporation will post 6.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 16th. Investors of record on Friday, August 15th will be issued a dividend of $1.065 per share. This represents a $4.26 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 15th. This is a positive change from Duke Energy's previous quarterly dividend of $1.05. Duke Energy's payout ratio is presently 69.27%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have commented on DUK shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Duke Energy from $127.00 to $131.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 21st. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $127.00 to $138.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. Citigroup boosted their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $130.00 to $142.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $132.00 target price on Duke Energy in a research report on Tuesday, July 1st. Finally, BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on Duke Energy from $131.00 to $132.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 6th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $130.07.

Duke Energy Company Profile

Duke Energy Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, operates as an energy company in the United States. It operates through two segments: Electric Utilities and Infrastructure (EU&I), and Gas Utilities and Infrastructure (GU&I). The EU&I segment generates, transmits, distributes, and sells electricity in the Carolinas, Florida, and the Midwest.