Duke Energy Corporation $DUK Shares Sold by Quantitative Investment Management LLC

Key Points

• Quantitative Investment Management LLC reduced its stake in Duke Energy by 89.4%, now holding only 4,413 shares after selling 37,284 during the first quarter.
• Several hedge funds increased their investments in Duke Energy, with Jump Financial LLC growing its position by 1,581.8%, owning 134,626 shares valued at $16.42 million.
• Duke Energy recently announced a quarterly dividend increase to $1.065 per share, reflecting an annual yield of 3.5%.

Quantitative Investment Management LLC decreased its stake in shares of Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK - Free Report) by 89.4% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 4,413 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 37,284 shares during the period. Quantitative Investment Management LLC's holdings in Duke Energy were worth $538,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Investment Management Corp of Ontario increased its stake in Duke Energy by 212.8% in the 4th quarter. Investment Management Corp of Ontario now owns 79,989 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $8,618,000 after acquiring an additional 54,413 shares during the last quarter. Andrew Hill Investment Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in Duke Energy by 338.6% in the 1st quarter. Andrew Hill Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 37,763 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $4,606,000 after buying an additional 29,153 shares during the period. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in Duke Energy by 7.7% in the 1st quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 291,667 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $35,575,000 after buying an additional 20,942 shares during the period. Pinnacle Financial Partners Inc lifted its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 9.9% in the 1st quarter. Pinnacle Financial Partners Inc now owns 127,419 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $14,451,000 after purchasing an additional 11,445 shares during the period. Finally, Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 8.1% in the 1st quarter. Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc. now owns 51,354 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $6,264,000 after purchasing an additional 3,837 shares during the period. 65.31% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Duke Energy Trading Down 1.0%

Shares of DUK stock traded down $1.18 during trading on Thursday, hitting $122.50. 2,496,426 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,436,299. The firm has a market capitalization of $95.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 0.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.55, a current ratio of 0.66 and a quick ratio of 0.42. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $120.45 and its 200-day moving average price is $118.59. Duke Energy Corporation has a 52-week low of $105.20 and a 52-week high of $127.85.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The utilities provider reported $1.25 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.29 by ($0.04). Duke Energy had a net margin of 15.51% and a return on equity of 9.85%. The company had revenue of $7.51 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.07 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.18 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 4.7% on a year-over-year basis. Duke Energy has set its FY 2025 guidance at 6.170-6.420 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that Duke Energy Corporation will post 6.33 earnings per share 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. Investors of record on Friday, August 15th will be given a $1.065 dividend. This represents a $4.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.5%. This is a boost from Duke Energy's previous quarterly dividend of $1.05. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 15th. Duke Energy's dividend payout ratio is presently 69.27%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the company. UBS Group reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $127.00 price objective (up previously from $124.00) on shares of Duke Energy in a research report on Friday, July 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Duke Energy from $127.00 to $131.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 21st. Barclays boosted their target price on Duke Energy from $122.00 to $131.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 13th. Raymond James Financial initiated coverage on Duke Energy in a research report on Friday, June 13th. They set a "market perform" rating on the stock. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group set a $132.00 price objective on Duke Energy in a research note on Tuesday, July 1st. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $130.07.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Thomas Preston Jr. Gillespie sold 6,700 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $124.26, for a total transaction of $832,542.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 46,422 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,768,397.72. This represents a 12.61% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Bonnie B. Titone sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $124.38, for a total transaction of $248,760.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 19,608 shares in the company, valued at $2,438,843.04. This represents a 9.26% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.14% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.