Pathfinder Wealth Consulting Inc. Acquires New Stake in Duke Energy Corporation $DUK

Key Points

• Pathfinder Wealth Consulting opened a new position in Duke Energy during the fourth quarter, buying 8,149 shares worth about $955,000. Several other institutional investors also added to their holdings, and institutions now own 65.31% of the stock.
• Duke Energy is benefiting from positive sentiment tied to surging power demand from data centers and AI infrastructure, with Goldman Sachs keeping it on its Conviction List and assigning a $132 price target. However, Morgan Stanley trimmed its target to $132 from $141 while maintaining an Equalweight rating.
• The company posted better-than-expected quarterly results, with EPS of $1.93 versus $1.87 expected and revenue of $9.18 billion. Duke also announced a quarterly dividend of $1.065 per share, implying a 3.4% annual yield.

Pathfinder Wealth Consulting Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund purchased 8,149 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $955,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Applied Finance Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Duke Energy during the 3rd quarter worth about $1,046,000. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. increased its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 9.2% during the 3rd quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 150,426 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $18,615,000 after purchasing an additional 12,677 shares during the last quarter. Reaves W H & Co. Inc. increased its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 1,118.3% during the 3rd quarter. Reaves W H & Co. Inc. now owns 99,459 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $12,308,000 after purchasing an additional 91,295 shares during the last quarter. Keybank National Association OH increased its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 13.4% during the 3rd quarter. Keybank National Association OH now owns 371,248 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $45,942,000 after purchasing an additional 43,925 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AE Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 51.9% during the 3rd quarter. AE Wealth Management LLC now owns 49,068 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $6,072,000 after purchasing an additional 16,772 shares during the last quarter. 65.31% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Key Stories Impacting Duke Energy

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

• Positive Sentiment: Duke Energy is being viewed as a potential beneficiary of surging power demand from data centers, which could support future generation growth and regulated utility investment opportunities. Why Duke Energy (DUK) Is Becoming a Data Center Power Demand Play
• Positive Sentiment: Goldman Sachs reiterated its bullish view by keeping Duke Energy on its Conviction List and assigning a $132 target, signaling confidence in regulatory progress and the company’s expansion plans. Why Duke Energy (DUK) Is Becoming a Data Center Power Demand Play
• Positive Sentiment: Utility-sector demand tailwinds linked to AI infrastructure are also supporting sentiment toward Duke Energy and other dividend-paying utilities. These 3 Utility Stocks Have Been Paying Dividends for Decades and AI Data Centers Just Made Them More Valuable
• Neutral Sentiment: North Carolina lawmakers moved to require approval for replacement nuclear capacity before Duke can retire coal plants, which could slow the company’s transition plans but may also protect near-term generation reliability and earnings visibility. North Carolina lawmakers just moved to block Duke Energy from closing coal plants until new nuclear is approved to replace every lost megawatt
• Neutral Sentiment: Morgan Stanley cut its price target on Duke Energy to $132 from $141 while maintaining an Equalweight rating, a modestly softer analyst signal but still above the recent share price. Morgan Stanley adjusts price target on Duke Energy to 132 from 141
• Neutral Sentiment: Other items, including local outage and customer-service updates, appear operational in nature and are unlikely to materially affect the stock. Power restored for Duke Energy customers in Sullivan County

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Harry K. Sideris sold 20,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $124.37, for a total transaction of $2,487,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 96,102 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $11,952,205.74. This represents a 17.23% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Regis T. Repko sold 962 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 approximately $498,142.56. This trade represents a 19.80% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 24,462 shares of company stock worth $3,048,426 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.12% of the company's stock.

Duke Energy Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:DUK opened at $125.78 on Friday. The company's 50 day moving average price is $128.24 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $124.02. Duke Energy Corporation has a 12-month low of $113.39 and a 12-month high of $134.49. The firm has a market cap of $98.06 billion, a PE ratio of 19.26 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a quick ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 0.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.45.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Monday, May 4th. The utilities provider reported $1.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.87 by $0.06. Duke Energy had a net margin of 15.49% and a return on equity of 9.73%. The firm had revenue of $9.18 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.44 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.76 EPS. The business's revenue was up 11.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts predict that Duke Energy Corporation will post 6.71 earnings per share for the current year.

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 15th will be given a dividend of $1.065 per share. This represents a $4.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.4%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 15th. Duke Energy's dividend payout ratio is presently 65.24%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on DUK shares. Capitol Sec Mgt lowered shares of Duke Energy from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, April 10th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $135.00 to $136.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, April 20th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $141.00 to $142.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 11th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $141.00 to $132.00 in a research note on Thursday. Finally, BMO Capital Markets decreased their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $139.00 to $138.00 in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $139.07.

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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