Pinebridge Investments LLC Takes Position in Duke Energy Corporation $DUK

Key Points

• Pinebridge Investments opened a new position in Duke Energy during the fourth quarter, buying 53,971 shares valued at about $6.33 million.
• Duke Energy is benefiting from fresh federal support, with the U.S. Department of Energy selecting it for up to $61.8 million in grant funding to upgrade coal-fired plants in Kentucky and North Carolina.
• The company also faces mixed signals: analysts still view the stock as a Moderate Buy, but it is contending with pushback over a proposed 18% rate hike in North Carolina and continued insider share sales.

Pinebridge Investments LLC bought a new stake in Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 53,971 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $6,326,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in DUK. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 2.6% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 78,258,757 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $9,172,709,000 after purchasing an additional 1,957,592 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 19,292,633 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $2,266,675,000 after purchasing an additional 230,375 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp grew its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 0.4% in the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 7,758,700 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $960,139,000 after purchasing an additional 31,703 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 4.1% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 7,281,986 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $901,146,000 after purchasing an additional 288,499 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Capital Research Global Investors grew its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 0.3% in the third quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 5,033,225 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $622,862,000 after purchasing an additional 12,758 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.31% of the company's stock.

Key Stories Impacting Duke Energy

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

• Positive Sentiment: The U.S. Department of Energy selected Duke Energy for up to $61.8 million in grant funding to upgrade coal-fired plants in Kentucky and North Carolina, lifting total federal support for Duke projects to nearly $96 million. The funding should help improve reliability and may reduce customer costs. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Duke Energy said it sees data centers driving power demand growth at roughly 10x historic pace, which supports a longer-term growth story for utility load and capital investment. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Duke Energy also received a separate $61.8 million DOE grant headline from market coverage, reinforcing investor interest in federal support for its coal plant modernization efforts. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Duke Energy Foundation announced $500,000 in grants for South Carolina emergency preparedness and another $500,000 for small-business support in North Carolina. These are positive for reputation, but likely limited direct stock impact. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: North Carolina customers and consumer groups are pushing back hard against Duke Energy’s proposed 18% rate hike, which could increase regulatory scrutiny and weigh on sentiment if approval becomes difficult. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: St. Petersburg approved a feasibility study on leaving Duke Energy Florida for a city-run utility, a reminder of customer dissatisfaction and a potential long-term competitive/regulatory risk. Article Title

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently commented on DUK. Truist Financial cut their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $142.00 to $137.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, May 18th. Mizuho upped their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $130.00 to $139.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. UBS Group cut their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $137.00 to $135.00 in a report on Monday, May 11th. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $141.00 to $132.00 in a report on Thursday, May 21st. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Duke Energy from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, March 28th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $138.93.

Duke Energy Stock Up 0.0%

NYSE:DUK opened at $124.28 on Monday. Duke Energy Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $113.66 and a fifty-two week high of $134.49. The stock has a market capitalization of $96.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.03 and a beta of 0.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.45, a quick ratio of 0.44 and a current ratio of 0.66. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $126.82 and its 200-day simple moving average is $123.97.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 4th. The utilities provider reported $1.93 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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 business had revenue of $9.18 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $8.44 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.76 EPS. The company's revenue was up 11.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Duke Energy Corporation will post 6.71 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Harry K. Sideris sold 20,000 shares of Duke Energy stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $124.37, for a total value of $2,487,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 96,102 shares in the company, valued at $11,952,205.74. This trade represents a 17.23% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Louis E. Renjel sold 3,500 shares of Duke Energy stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $125.15, for a total transaction of $438,025.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 21,415 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,680,087.25. This trade represents a 14.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 0.12% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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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