Duke Energy Corporation $DUK Shares Bought by Sound Income Strategies LLC

Sound Income Strategies LLC grew its stake in shares of Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK) by 334.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 7,798 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 6,003 shares during the period. Sound Income Strategies LLC’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $930,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of DUK. ANTIPODES PARTNERS Ltd bought a new stake in Duke Energy in the 3rd quarter valued at about $86,309,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its position in Duke Energy by 448.9% in the 3rd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 826,296 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $102,254,000 after purchasing an additional 675,768 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in Duke Energy by 0.8% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 76,301,165 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $9,442,269,000 after purchasing an additional 584,382 shares during the last quarter. Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec lifted its position in Duke Energy by 19.1% in the 3rd quarter. Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec now owns 2,613,595 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $323,432,000 after purchasing an additional 419,992 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its position in Duke Energy by 4.1% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 7,281,986 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $901,146,000 after purchasing an additional 288,499 shares during the last quarter. 65.31% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Duke Energy News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: Barclays raised its price target on Duke Energy to $143 and kept an “overweight” rating, signaling analyst conviction and providing potential upside relative to the current price. Barclays raises price target
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst screens (Zacks Earnings ESP) and related coverage highlight utilities that could beat upcoming quarterly estimates — a signal some investors may be using to favor DUK into earnings season, supporting near-term demand for the shares. Zacks / Yahoo coverage
• Neutral Sentiment: Duke Energy will report first-quarter 2026 results on May 5 (7 a.m. ET). The upcoming print will be the primary catalyst for near-term stock movement as investors look for guidance, weather/storm costs, rate-case updates and execution on capital programs. Earnings release
• Neutral Sentiment: Industry pieces and company PR about grid investments and safety reminders (e.g., call 811 before digging) underline Duke’s focus on capital spending and outage prevention — positive for long-term reliability but neutral until costs/recoveries are clarified. ENR coverage
• Negative Sentiment: Duke has proposed utility rate increases totaling as much as ~18% over two years — a move that could boost future revenue but is generating public opposition and political risk, which may pressure sentiment and regulatory outcomes. Rate hike report
• Negative Sentiment: Local residents are speaking out against the proposed rate hike, highlighting potential regulatory headaches and delays to approval that could limit the company’s ability to recover costs. Local opposition
• Negative Sentiment: Operationally, Duke reported 360 underground line damages in Indiana during 2025 — an indicator of potential repair and replacement costs that could weigh on margins if not recovered through rates. Infrastructure damage report

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Louis E. Renjel sold 6,800 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $127.67, for a total transaction of $868,156.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 22,007 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,809,633.69. The trade was a 23.61% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, SVP Regis T. Repko sold 962 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $127.86, for a total transaction of $123,001.32. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 3,896 shares in the company, valued at $498,142.56. The trade was a 19.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders own 0.14% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on DUK shares. Morgan Stanley set a $139.00 price target on shares of Duke Energy in a report on Friday, February 20th. Mizuho set a $130.00 price target on shares of Duke Energy in a report on Tuesday, February 10th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $115.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 4th. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $127.00 to $143.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada cut their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $143.00 to $140.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 23rd. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $138.87.

Duke Energy Stock Up 0.2%

DUK stock opened at $131.66 on Wednesday. Duke Energy Corporation has a 52-week low of $111.22 and a 52-week high of $134.49. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $128.13 and its 200-day simple moving average is $123.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.54, a current ratio of 0.55 and a quick ratio of 0.33. The firm has a market capitalization of $102.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.83 and a beta of 0.46.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 9th. The utilities provider reported $1.50 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.49 by $0.01. Duke Energy had a net margin of 15.41% and a return on equity of 9.66%. The firm had revenue of $7.94 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.57 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.66 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Duke Energy Corporation will post 6.33 EPS for the current year.

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.