Vestor Capital LLC Lowers Holdings in Duke Energy Corporation $DUK

Key Points

• Vestor Capital cut its Duke Energy stake by 97.3% in the first quarter, selling 50,444 shares and retaining 1,385 shares worth approximately $181,000.
• Institutional sentiment was mixed but largely supportive: Janus Henderson, Vanguard, Amundi and Franklin Resources increased their holdings, while institutional investors collectively own 65.31% of DUK. Analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus with a $138.62 price target.
• Duke Energy reported stronger-than-expected quarterly results, with EPS of $1.93 and revenue of $9.18 billion, and raised its quarterly dividend to $1.085 per share, yielding about 3.5% annually.

Vestor Capital LLC trimmed its stake in Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK - Free Report) by 97.3% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 1,385 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 50,444 shares during the quarter. Vestor Capital LLC's holdings in Duke Energy were worth $181,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of DUK. Janus Henderson Group PLC lifted its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 5,254.4% during the first quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 2,735,816 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $358,227,000 after purchasing an additional 2,684,721 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake 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 valued at $9,172,709,000 after buying an additional 1,957,592 shares in the last quarter. Amundi raised its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 56.9% during the 4th quarter. Amundi now owns 2,662,460 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $312,067,000 after buying an additional 965,808 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its position in Duke Energy by 13.1% during the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 8,236,893 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $965,446,000 after acquiring an additional 954,907 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Milford Funds Ltd. purchased a new position in Duke Energy in the 4th quarter worth approximately $97,905,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.31% of the company's stock.

Duke Energy News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: Analysts have assigned Duke Energy a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating, indicating generally favorable expectations for the stock. Duke Energy Corporation Given Consensus Rating of Moderate Buy
• Positive Sentiment: Duke Energy’s upcoming second-quarter results are expected to benefit from grid investments, rising electricity demand and infrastructure milestones, with analysts looking for year-over-year EPS growth. Duke Energy to Release Q2 Earnings
• Positive Sentiment: New underground power-line construction and plans to employ about 1,000 workers on multibillion-dollar generation projects underscore Duke Energy’s long-term capital-investment and reliability strategy, while potentially supporting future rate-base growth. Duke Energy Starts Installing Underground Power Lines
• Neutral Sentiment: Duke Energy restored power to customers in western North Carolina following severe storms. The recovery demonstrates operational responsiveness, although storm-related restoration work can create short-term costs. Power Restored to Western North Carolina Customers
• Negative Sentiment: North Carolina regulators reduced a proposed Duke Energy rate increase by nearly half. Although customer bills would still rise, the smaller increase could limit near-term revenue and earnings support relative to the company’s original request. North Carolina Duke Energy Rate Hike Is Cut

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently commented on DUK. Weiss Ratings reissued a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Duke Energy in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $135.00 to $136.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, April 20th. Mizuho lowered their target price on Duke Energy from $139.00 to $135.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, June 18th. Morgan Stanley set a $138.00 price target on Duke Energy in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. Finally, BTIG Research reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Duke Energy in a report on Thursday, July 23rd. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $138.62.

Insider Transactions at Duke Energy

In other Duke Energy news, CEO Harry K. Sideris sold 20,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated 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 directly owned 96,102 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $11,952,205.74. This represents a 17.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 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 transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 21,415 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,680,087.25. This trade represents a 14.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.12% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Duke Energy Price Performance

Shares of Duke Energy stock opened at $125.47 on Friday. Duke Energy Corporation has a 52 week low of $113.89 and a 52 week high of $134.49. The company has a current ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 0.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.45. The stock has a market cap of $97.82 billion, a PE ratio of 19.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.38. The company's 50-day moving average price is $125.64 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $126.17.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 4th. The utilities provider reported $1.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.87 by $0.06. Duke Energy had a net margin of 15.49% and a return on equity of 9.73%. The company had revenue of $9.18 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $8.44 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.76 EPS. The business's revenue was up 11.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Duke Energy Corporation will post 6.72 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 14th will be issued a dividend of $1.085 per share. This represents a $4.34 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.5%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 14th. This is a boost from Duke Energy's previous quarterly dividend of $1.06. Duke Energy's dividend payout ratio is presently 65.24%.

Duke Energy Profile

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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