Lockheed Martin Investment Management Co. Sells 139,000 Shares of Duke Energy Corporation $DUK

Lockheed Martin Investment Management Co. decreased its holdings in shares of Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK) by 74.2% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 48,240 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 139,000 shares during the period. Lockheed Martin Investment Management Co.’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $5,500,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new stake in Duke Energy during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $605,680,000. Janus Henderson Group PLC lifted its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 5,254.4% in the first quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 2,735,816 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $358,227,000 after purchasing an additional 2,684,721 shares in the last quarter. Swiss National Bank boosted its position in shares of Duke Energy by 7.1% during the first quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 2,282,341 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $298,850,000 after buying an additional 151,400 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its position in shares of Duke Energy by 2.9% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,092,284 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $273,979,000 after buying an additional 58,967 shares during the last quarter. Finally, National Pension Service grew its holdings in Duke Energy by 1.8% during the second quarter. National Pension Service now owns 2,124,004 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $268,856,000 after buying an additional 36,835 shares in the last quarter. 65.31% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on DUK shares. Truist Financial lowered their price target on Duke Energy from $135.00 to $130.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, October 12th. BMO Capital Markets cut their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $134.00 to $132.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Duke Energy in a research note on Thursday, October 29th. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “hold” rating and issued a $121.00 target price on shares of Duke Energy in a report on Monday, October 12th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $127.00 to $128.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 21st. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Duke Energy currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $132.19.

Key Stories Impacting Duke Energy

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

• Positive Sentiment: Wall Street analysts are described as cautiously optimistic about Duke Energy’s prospects, although the stock has lagged the S&P 500 over the past year. That outlook may support sentiment, but the article does not provide a specific forecast or rating change. Are Wall Street Analysts Predicting Duke Energy Stock Will Climb or Sink?
• Positive Sentiment: Duke Energy Foundation grants to local first-responder agencies offer community-relations benefits, though the story does not indicate a material financial impact. Indiana first-responder grants
• Neutral Sentiment: Davidson County leaders are set to vote on rezoning for a Duke Energy natural-gas facility along the Yadkin River. Approval could advance the project, but the vote is pending and the articles do not report an outcome or quantify its expected financial contribution. Davidson County vote on Duke Energy plant Davidson County rezoning vote
• Negative Sentiment: A news report says a customer’s costly appliance replacements followed a Duke Energy billing mix-up. The case could pose reputational or customer-service concerns, though no broader pattern or material financial exposure is established in the headline. Duke Energy billing mix-up report

Duke Energy Price Performance

Shares of NYSE DUK opened at $128.26 on Tuesday. Duke Energy Corporation has a twelve month low of $112.40 and a twelve month high of $134.49. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $120.00 and its 200-day moving average price is $124.55. The company has a market capitalization of $100.01 billion, a PE ratio of 18.75, a PEG ratio of 3.02 and a beta of 0.33. The company has a quick ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 0.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.47.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 5th. The utilities provider reported $1.99 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.86 by $0.13. The company had revenue of $9.10 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.91 billion. Duke Energy had a return on equity of 9.78% and a net margin of 15.78%. Duke Energy’s revenue was up 6.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.81 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Duke Energy Corporation will post 6.72 EPS for the current year.

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 13th will be paid a $1.0850 dividend. This represents a $4.34 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.4%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 13th. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio is 63.45%.

Insider Transactions at Duke Energy

In other news, EVP Bonnie Titone sold 2,900 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, October 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $128.00, for a total transaction of $371,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 26,111 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,342,208. This trade represents a 10.00% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 0.12% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

About Duke Energy

Duke Energy is a U.S. energy company focused primarily on regulated electric utilities and natural gas distribution. Its businesses generate, transmit and distribute electricity, and provide natural gas service to residential, commercial and industrial customers.

The company serves electric customers in North Carolina, South Carolina, Florida, Indiana, Ohio and Kentucky. Its natural gas distribution operations serve customers in several states, including North Carolina, South Carolina, Ohio, Kentucky and Tennessee.

Duke Energy’s power generation portfolio includes nuclear, natural gas, coal, hydroelectric and renewable resources.