Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp Acquires 10,184 Shares of Duke Energy Corporation $DUK

Key Points

• Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp raised its stake in Duke Energy by 10,184 shares in Q4 to 2,531,181 shares, valued at about $296.7 million, making Duke its 19th-largest holding and roughly 0.7% of its portfolio.
• Wall Street has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy with a $140.25 average price target, and several firms recently boosted targets or ratings (e.g., Truist $142 buy, Barclays $143 overweight, Jefferies $141 hold).
• Insiders have been selling: CEO Louis E. Renjel sold 6,800 shares (about a 23.6% reduction) and SVP Regis T. Repko sold 962 shares (about a 19.8% reduction), slightly increasing insider selling activity.

Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK - Free Report) by 0.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,531,181 shares of the utilities provider's stock after acquiring an additional 10,184 shares during the quarter. Duke Energy makes up about 0.7% of Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp's portfolio, making the stock its 19th biggest holding. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp owned 0.33% of Duke Energy worth $296,689,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Pflug Koory LLC boosted its stake 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 acquiring an additional 79 shares during the period. EWA LLC boosted its stake in shares of 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. Mill Creek Capital Advisors LLC boosted its stake 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 worth $229,000 after acquiring an additional 82 shares during the period. CYBER HORNET ETFs LLC boosted its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 4.1% during the 3rd quarter. CYBER HORNET ETFs LLC now owns 2,113 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $261,000 after acquiring an additional 83 shares during the period. Finally, Blossom Wealth Management boosted its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 3.5% during the 3rd quarter. Blossom Wealth Management now owns 2,530 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $313,000 after acquiring an additional 85 shares during the period. 65.31% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently issued reports on DUK. Truist Financial began coverage on Duke Energy in a research note on Monday, April 20th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $142.00 price target for the company. Weiss Ratings restated a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Duke Energy in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Duke Energy from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, March 28th. Barclays boosted their price target on Duke Energy from $127.00 to $143.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 7th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on Duke Energy from $125.00 to $141.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 17th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $140.25.

Duke Energy Stock Performance

NYSE:DUK opened at $127.14 on Tuesday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $129.71 and a 200-day moving average price of $124.23. The company has a market cap of $98.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.12 and a beta of 0.46. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.54, a quick ratio of 0.33 and a current ratio of 0.55. Duke Energy Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $111.22 and a fifty-two week high of $134.49.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Monday, February 9th. The utilities provider reported $1.50 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.49 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $7.94 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.57 billion. Duke Energy had a return on equity of 9.66% and a net margin of 15.41%.During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.66 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Duke Energy Corporation will post 6.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP Regis T. Repko sold 962 shares of the company's 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 completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 3,896 shares in the company, valued at approximately $498,142.56. This represents a 19.80% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Louis E. Renjel sold 6,800 shares of the company's stock in a transaction 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 sale, the chief executive officer owned 22,007 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,809,633.69. The trade was a 23.61% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Corporate insiders own 0.12% of the company's stock.

About Duke Energy

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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