Stephens Inc. AR Has $45.32 Million Stake in Duke Energy Corporation $DUK

Stephens Inc. AR lifted its stake in shares of Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK) by 12.5% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 345,684 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 38,505 shares during the quarter. Stephens Inc. AR’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $45,316,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. World Investment Advisors boosted its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 62.7% during the 4th quarter. World Investment Advisors now owns 42,680 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $5,003,000 after buying an additional 16,450 shares during the period. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in Duke Energy by 22.7% in the 4th quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 132,530 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $15,534,000 after acquiring an additional 24,497 shares during the period. Moseley Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in Duke Energy by 423.6% during the 4th quarter. Moseley Investment Management Inc. now owns 9,749 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,143,000 after acquiring an additional 7,887 shares during the last quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC boosted its holdings in Duke Energy by 4.1% during the fourth quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 359,829 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $42,176,000 after acquiring an additional 14,137 shares during the period. Finally, Advisors Management Group Inc. ADV boosted its holdings in Duke Energy by 187.8% during the fourth quarter. Advisors Management Group Inc. ADV now owns 78,293 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $9,177,000 after acquiring an additional 51,088 shares during the period. 65.31% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Duke Energy news, CEO Louis E. Renjel sold 3,500 shares of Duke Energy stock in a transaction 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 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 ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Harry K. Sideris sold 20,000 shares of Duke Energy 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 sale, the chief executive officer owned 96,102 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,952,205.74. This trade represents a 17.23% 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 insiders.

Duke Energy Trading Down 0.1%

Shares of DUK opened at $129.44 on Monday. Duke Energy Corporation has a 12-month low of $113.89 and a 12-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 firm has a market capitalization of $100.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.82 and a beta of 0.38. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $125.06 and its 200 day moving average price is $124.84.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 4th. The utilities provider reported $1.93 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.87 by $0.06. Duke Energy had a return on equity of 9.73% and a net margin of 15.49%.The company had revenue of $9.18 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.44 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.76 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 11.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts predict that Duke Energy Corporation will post 6.71 earnings per share for the current year.

Duke Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 16th. Investors of record on Friday, May 15th were given a $1.065 dividend. This represents a $4.26 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 15th. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 65.24%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the company. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Duke Energy in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Truist Financial lowered their target price on Duke Energy from $142.00 to $137.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, May 18th. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price target on Duke Energy from $143.00 to $138.00 in a report on Monday, May 11th. Evercore increased their price objective on Duke Energy from $139.00 to $140.00 in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Finally, Capitol Sec Mgt lowered shares of Duke Energy from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, April 10th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $138.33.

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.