Duke Energy Corporation $DUK Shares Sold by State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D

Key Points

• The State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D reduced its stake in Duke Energy by 9.3%, holding 261,818 shares worth approximately $31.93 million after selling 26,714 shares.
• Duke Energy recently announced an increase in its quarterly dividend to $1.065 per share, representing a yield of 3.5% and a payout ratio of 67.97%.
• Institutional investors currently own 65.31% of Duke Energy's stock, with several funds significantly increasing their positions, including a 212.8% rise from Investment Management Corp of Ontario.

State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D reduced its stake in Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK - Free Report) by 9.3% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 261,818 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 26,714 shares during the period. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D's holdings in Duke Energy were worth $31,934,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of DUK. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 2.3% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 74,562,000 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $9,094,327,000 after buying an additional 1,676,061 shares during the last quarter. GQG Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 17,880.0% in the 1st quarter. GQG Partners LLC now owns 10,249,508 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,250,133,000 after buying an additional 10,192,503 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 1.1% in the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 8,656,244 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,055,087,000 after buying an additional 93,699 shares during the last quarter. Royal Bank of Canada increased its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 4.4% in the 4th quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 8,503,503 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $916,168,000 after buying an additional 357,967 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp increased its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 6.7% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 8,001,073 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $862,036,000 after buying an additional 499,652 shares during the last quarter. 65.31% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

DUK has been the topic of several analyst reports. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $122.00 to $131.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 13th. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $130.00 to $142.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. Raymond James Financial initiated coverage on shares of Duke Energy in a report on Friday, June 13th. They set a "market perform" rating on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $127.00 to $138.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $131.00 to $132.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 6th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Duke Energy presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $129.80.

Insider Transactions at Duke Energy

In other Duke Energy news, EVP Thomas Preston Jr. Gillespie sold 6,700 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 12th. The shares were 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 approximately $5,768,397.72. This represents a 12.61% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.14% of the company's stock.

Duke Energy Stock Up 0.8%

Shares of DUK traded up $1.00 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $124.78. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,264,815 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,591,256. The company's 50-day moving average is $119.34 and its 200-day moving average is $118.15. Duke Energy Corporation has a 52-week low of $105.20 and a 52-week high of $127.85. The firm has a market capitalization of $97.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.28, a PEG ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 0.36. The company has a current ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 0.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.55.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The utilities provider reported $1.25 EPS 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 firm had revenue of $7.51 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $7.07 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.18 EPS. The company'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. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Duke Energy Corporation will post 6.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 15th will be paid a dividend of $1.065 per share. This represents a $4.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.4%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 15th. This is a positive change from Duke Energy's previous quarterly dividend of $1.05. Duke Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 69.27%.

Duke Energy 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.