Jennison Associates LLC Sells 5,502 Shares of Duke Energy Corporation $DUK

Jennison Associates LLC cut its position in Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK) by 2.1% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 254,901 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 5,502 shares during the period. Jennison Associates LLC’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $33,377,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in DUK. Basso Capital Management L.P. bought a new stake in Duke Energy during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Dorato Capital Management bought a new position in Duke Energy in the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Evolution Wealth Management Inc. raised its position in Duke Energy by 1,111.1% in the 4th quarter. Evolution Wealth Management Inc. now owns 218 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Triumph Capital Management boosted its stake in Duke Energy by 68.6% in the fourth quarter. Triumph Capital Management now owns 231 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 94 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cornerstone Financial Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Duke Energy during the fourth quarter worth $28,000. 65.31% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

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

Duke Energy Trading Up 0.6%

DUK stock opened at $125.82 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $98.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.27, a PEG ratio of 2.75 and a beta of 0.38. Duke Energy Corporation has a twelve month low of $113.89 and a twelve month high of $134.49. The company has a quick ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 0.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.45. The business has a fifty day moving average of $124.91 and a 200-day moving average of $125.53.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 4th. The utilities provider reported $1.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.87 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $9.18 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.44 billion. Duke Energy had a return on equity of 9.73% and a net margin of 15.49%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 11.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.76 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Duke Energy Corporation will post 6.72 EPS for the current year.

Duke Energy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 14th will be paid a $1.085 dividend. This is a boost from Duke Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.06. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 14th. This represents a $4.34 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.4%. Duke Energy’s payout ratio is 65.24%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Capitol Sec Mgt lowered Duke Energy from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, April 10th. UBS Group decreased their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $137.00 to $135.00 in a report on Monday, May 11th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Duke Energy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, March 28th. Mizuho dropped their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $139.00 to $135.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, June 18th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $135.00 to $136.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $138.47.

Key Duke Energy News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Duke Energy Carolinas reached a new settlement that would cut its requested rate hike by more than half, signaling a compromise with regulators that could improve the odds of approval and reduce uncertainty around the company’s North Carolina utility earnings. Duke Energy Carolinas halves its rate hike request in new settlement
• Positive Sentiment: Multiple reports say Duke Energy lowered its proposed rate increase after public and state pushback, which may ease political pressure and support a more manageable path to recovering costs from customers. Duke Energy reaches North Carolina rate deal that would cut proposed increase by more than half
• Positive Sentiment: Truist Financial raised its price target to $138, and BMO still rates the stock “outperform” even after cutting its target to $134, suggesting analysts continue to see upside in Duke Energy shares. Benzinga report on BMO price target change
• Neutral Sentiment: Sector commentary from Zacks highlighted Duke Energy as one of several regulated utilities benefiting from grid upgrades and clean-energy investment themes, but this was broader industry context rather than a company-specific catalyst. Zacks Industry Outlook Highlights NextEra Energy, Duke Energy, American Electric Power and Ameren
• Neutral Sentiment: Some valuation-focused coverage argued DUK could be overvalued after the recent rate-case pushback, which adds a cautious note but is not as immediate a driver as the settlement news. Duke Energy (DUK) Stock Could Be 29% Overvalued After Rate Case Pushback

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.