Vestcor Inc Increases Holdings in Duke Energy Corporation $DUK

Vestcor Inc boosted its holdings in Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK) by 27.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 184,418 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 39,230 shares during the quarter. Vestcor Inc’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $21,616,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings 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 purchasing an additional 1,957,592 shares in the last quarter. ANTIPODES PARTNERS Ltd purchased a new stake in Duke Energy in the 3rd quarter worth about $86,309,000. VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al boosted its holdings in Duke Energy by 447.3% during the 4th quarter. VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al now owns 513,905 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $60,235,000 after acquiring an additional 420,005 shares during the period. Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec boosted its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 19.1% during the third 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 period. Finally, Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich boosted its position in Duke Energy by 178.1% in the 4th quarter. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich now owns 505,891 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $59,376,000 after buying an additional 323,991 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.31% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Duke Energy news, CEO Harry K. Sideris sold 20,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the chief executive officer owned 96,102 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,952,205.74. The trade was a 17.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Louis E. Renjel sold 3,500 shares of Duke Energy stock in a transaction on Monday, May 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $125.15, for a total value of $438,025.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 21,415 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,680,087.25. This represents a 14.05% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Company insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

Duke Energy Stock Performance

NYSE:DUK opened at $124.28 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $96.89 billion, a PE ratio of 19.03 and a beta of 0.39. Duke Energy Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $113.66 and a fifty-two week high of $134.49. The company has a fifty day moving average of $126.82 and a two-hundred day moving average of $123.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.45, a quick ratio of 0.44 and a current ratio of 0.66.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 4th. The utilities provider reported $1.93 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 analyst estimates of $8.44 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.76 EPS. Duke Energy’s quarterly revenue was up 11.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts forecast that Duke Energy Corporation will post 6.71 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 15th will be paid a $1.065 dividend. This represents a $4.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 15th. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 65.24%.

Duke Energy News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: The U.S. Department of Energy selected Duke Energy for up to $61.8 million in grant funding to upgrade coal-fired plants in Kentucky and North Carolina, lifting total federal support for Duke projects to nearly $96 million. The funding should help improve reliability and may reduce customer costs. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Duke Energy said it sees data centers driving power demand growth at roughly 10x historic pace, which supports a longer-term growth story for utility load and capital investment. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Duke Energy also received a separate $61.8 million DOE grant headline from market coverage, reinforcing investor interest in federal support for its coal plant modernization efforts. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Duke Energy Foundation announced $500,000 in grants for South Carolina emergency preparedness and another $500,000 for small-business support in North Carolina. These are positive for reputation, but likely limited direct stock impact. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: North Carolina customers and consumer groups are pushing back hard against Duke Energy’s proposed 18% rate hike, which could increase regulatory scrutiny and weigh on sentiment if approval becomes difficult. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: St. Petersburg approved a feasibility study on leaving Duke Energy Florida for a city-run utility, a reminder of customer dissatisfaction and a potential long-term competitive/regulatory risk. Article Title

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on DUK shares. Wall Street Zen upgraded Duke Energy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, March 28th. Capitol Sec Mgt downgraded Duke Energy from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, April 10th. Mizuho increased their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $130.00 to $139.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Duke Energy in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $139.00 to $136.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, May 13th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $138.93.

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.