Jones Financial Companies Lllp Buys 166,403 Shares of Duke Energy Corporation $DUK

Key Points

• Jones Financial Companies Lllp increased its stake in Duke Energy Corporation by 32.5%, acquiring 166,403 shares, resulting in ownership of 677,924 shares valued at $81.17 million.
• Duke Energy recently declared an **increased quarterly dividend of $1.065**, with an annualized dividend yield of **3.5%**.
• The company reported **$1.25 EPS for the last quarter**, which missed estimates, but revenue was over expectations at **$7.51 billion**.

Jones Financial Companies Lllp increased its stake in shares of Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK - Free Report) by 32.5% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 677,924 shares of the utilities provider's stock after acquiring an additional 166,403 shares during the quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp owned about 0.09% of Duke Energy worth $81,174,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in Duke Energy by 2.3% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 74,562,000 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $9,094,327,000 after purchasing an additional 1,676,061 shares during the last quarter. GQG Partners LLC lifted its position in Duke Energy by 17,880.0% during the first quarter. GQG Partners LLC now owns 10,249,508 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,250,133,000 after purchasing an additional 10,192,503 shares during the last quarter. Royal Bank of Canada lifted its position in Duke Energy by 4.9% during the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 8,921,517 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,088,158,000 after purchasing an additional 418,014 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in Duke Energy by 1.1% during the first quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 8,656,244 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,055,087,000 after purchasing an additional 93,699 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp lifted its position in Duke Energy by 1.9% during the first quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 8,153,615 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $994,496,000 after purchasing an additional 152,542 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 65.31% of the company's stock.

Duke Energy Trading Down 0.1%

DUK stock opened at $121.96 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $94.84 billion, a PE ratio of 19.83, a P/E/G ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 0.39. Duke Energy Corporation has a 12 month low of $105.20 and a 12 month high of $127.85. The firm's 50-day moving average is $121.42 and its 200 day moving average is $119.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.55, a current ratio of 0.66 and a quick ratio of 0.42.

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

Duke Energy Increases Dividend

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

Insider Activity

In other Duke Energy news, SVP Bonnie B. Titone sold 2,000 shares of the 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 transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 19,608 shares in the company, valued at $2,438,843.04. This represents a 9.26% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Thomas Preston Jr. Gillespie sold 6,700 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 approximately $5,768,397.72. The trade was a 12.61% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.14% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have commented on DUK shares. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $122.00 to $131.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 13th. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $132.00 price objective on shares of Duke Energy in a research report on Tuesday, July 1st. Raymond James Financial initiated coverage on shares of Duke Energy in a research note on Friday, June 13th. They issued a "market perform" rating on the stock. BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $131.00 to $132.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 6th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $127.00 to $131.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 21st. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $130.62.

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.

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