Duke Energy Corporation $DUK Shares Sold by Energy Income Partners LLC

Energy Income Partners LLC cut its stake in Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK) by 6.5% in the first quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 1,038,588 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 72,405 shares during the quarter. Duke Energy makes up about 2.2% of Energy Income Partners LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 11th biggest position. Energy Income Partners LLC’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $135,993,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Sharp Wealth Advisory LLC boosted its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 4.5% in the 1st quarter. Sharp Wealth Advisory LLC now owns 1,876 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $246,000 after buying an additional 81 shares during the period. Absher Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 2.3% during the first quarter. Absher Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,648 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $478,000 after buying an additional 81 shares during the period. A4 Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Duke Energy by 3.3% in the fourth quarter. A4 Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,597 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $304,000 after acquiring an additional 82 shares in the last quarter. Elm Partners Management LLC lifted its stake in Duke Energy by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. Elm Partners Management LLC now owns 9,254 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,085,000 after acquiring an additional 83 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CYBER HORNET ETFs LLC grew its holdings in Duke Energy by 4.1% during the 3rd quarter. CYBER HORNET ETFs LLC now owns 2,113 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $261,000 after acquiring an additional 83 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.31% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Harry K. Sideris sold 20,000 shares of Duke Energy stock in a transaction on Friday, May 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $124.37, for a total value of $2,487,400.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 96,102 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,952,205.74. The trade was a 17.23% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Louis E. Renjel sold 3,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, May 11th. The stock was 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 of the company’s stock, 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. Insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

Key Headlines Impacting Duke Energy

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

• Positive Sentiment: Duke Energy said customers will not face rate hikes specifically to recover data-center costs, arguing that the rapid growth in data-center demand should ultimately produce long-term customer savings through greater utilization of the grid. This could support load growth and future earnings if the company’s projections are validated. Duke Energy promises no rate hikes to cover data center costs Duke Energy Says Data Center Growth Will Deliver Long-Term Customer Savings
• Positive Sentiment: Duke Energy’s battery-storage strategy is expanding as data centers reshape North Carolina’s power demand. Additional storage could improve grid reliability and help the utility manage peak demand, although it also requires capital investment. Duke Energy’s battery strategy grows as data centers reshape North Carolina’s grid
• Neutral Sentiment: KeyCorp published longer-term earnings estimates for Duke Energy, giving investors an updated view of potential FY2030 profitability but offering no immediate change to the company’s operating outlook. KeyCorp Estimates Duke Energy’s FY2030 Earnings
• Neutral Sentiment: The Duke Energy Foundation announced $1 million in grants to more than 50 North Carolina nonprofits, bringing the company’s customer-assistance and community-support contributions since 2016 above $65 million. The move may bolster community relations but is unlikely to materially affect earnings. Duke Energy surpasses $65 million in North Carolina customer assistance
• Negative Sentiment: North Carolina officials, including the attorney general and Gov. Roy Cooper, are pressing Duke Energy to protect existing ratepayers from data-center-related costs and consider a separate data-center tariff. The political and regulatory pressure raises uncertainty over cost recovery and could constrain the company’s ability to earn on infrastructure investments. Attorney General calls on Duke Energy to commit to data center protections for ratepayers Gov. Stein pushes for Duke Energy to add tariff on data centers
• Negative Sentiment: Residents and state officials continue to push back against proposed electricity-rate increases, even after Duke Energy reduced its request. The dispute reinforces concerns that higher bills could trigger additional political opposition, delays, or less favorable regulatory treatment. Duke Energy reduces proposed rate increase, state officials still push back

Duke Energy Stock Performance

NYSE DUK opened at $128.87 on Tuesday. The company has a fifty day moving average of $125.42 and a two-hundred day moving average of $125.93. The company has a market capitalization of $100.46 billion, a PE ratio of 19.73, a P/E/G ratio of 2.88 and a beta of 0.38. Duke Energy Corporation has a 1 year low of $113.89 and a 1 year high of $134.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.45, a current ratio of 0.66 and a quick ratio of 0.44.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last posted its earnings results on Monday, May 4th. The utilities provider reported $1.93 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.87 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $9.18 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.44 billion. Duke Energy had a return on equity of 9.73% and a net margin of 15.49%.The business’s quarterly revenue was up 11.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.76 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Duke Energy Corporation will post 6.72 earnings per share 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 given a dividend of $1.085 per share. This represents a $4.34 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.4%. This is a boost from Duke Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.06. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 14th. Duke Energy’s payout ratio is 66.46%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on DUK. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $143.00 to $138.00 in a report on Monday, May 11th. Evercore increased their target price on Duke Energy from $139.00 to $140.00 in a report on Monday, May 11th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Duke Energy in a report on Monday, May 4th. Capitol Sec Mgt downgraded Duke Energy from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, April 10th. Finally, UBS Group decreased their target price on Duke Energy from $137.00 to $135.00 in a research note on Monday, May 11th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $138.62.

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.