Constant Guidance Financial LLC Acquires 4,300 Shares of Duke Energy Corporation $DUK

Constant Guidance Financial LLC boosted its holdings in Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK) by 51.8% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 12,600 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 4,300 shares during the quarter. Duke Energy accounts for about 1.1% of Constant Guidance Financial LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 13th biggest position. Constant Guidance Financial LLC’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $1,650,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. World Investment Advisors increased its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 62.7% during the fourth 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 in the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in Duke Energy by 22.7% during the 4th quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 132,530 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $15,534,000 after purchasing an additional 24,497 shares in the last quarter. Moseley Investment Management Inc. raised its position in Duke Energy by 423.6% in the 4th quarter. Moseley Investment Management Inc. now owns 9,749 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,143,000 after purchasing an additional 7,887 shares during the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 29.3% during the fourth quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 53,861 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $6,313,000 after purchasing an additional 12,219 shares during the last quarter. Finally, SBI Okasan Asset Management Co.Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Duke Energy in the fourth quarter valued at about $1,316,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.31% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on DUK shares. UBS Group dropped their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $137.00 to $135.00 in a research note on Monday, May 11th. KeyCorp raised Duke Energy from a “sector weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $139.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 23rd. Barclays dropped their target price on Duke Energy from $143.00 to $134.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, June 18th. Capitol Sec Mgt lowered Duke Energy from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, April 10th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Duke Energy from $135.00 to $136.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $138.62.

Insider Activity

In other Duke Energy news, CEO Louis E. Renjel sold 3,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 directly owned 21,415 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,680,087.25. This trade represents a 14.05% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Harry K. Sideris sold 20,000 shares of Duke Energy stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 96,102 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,952,205.74. The trade was a 17.23% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

Duke Energy News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: Analysts expect Duke Energy’s upcoming earnings to grow and identify factors that could support an earnings beat. A favorable report could reinforce investor confidence in the company’s regulated growth outlook. Duke Energy Earnings Expected to Grow
• Positive Sentiment: Duke says expanding data-center demand should create long-term customer savings, suggesting a potential source of load growth and infrastructure investment. The company also promised not to raise rates to cover data-center costs, which may reduce near-term political and customer backlash. Duke Energy Says Data Center Growth Will Deliver Long-Term Customer Savings Duke Energy Promises No Rate Hikes
• Neutral Sentiment: Comparable utility results were encouraging: DTE Energy beat second-quarter estimates despite a year-over-year earnings decline, while CenterPoint Energy reported an adjusted earnings beat and 10.7% revenue growth. The reports provide sector context but do not directly change Duke’s earnings outlook. DTE Energy Q2 Earnings CenterPoint Energy Q2 Earnings
• Neutral Sentiment: The Duke Energy Foundation announced another $1 million for North Carolina nonprofits, taking total customer-assistance and community support above $65 million since 2016. The initiative may strengthen community relations but has limited direct earnings impact. Duke Energy North Carolina Customer Assistance
• Negative Sentiment: North Carolina officials and an attorney general are pressing Duke to protect ratepayers from data-center-related costs. Although Duke reduced its proposed rate increase and says data centers will not drive customer rate hikes, continued political and regulatory opposition could delay approvals or constrain returns. Attorney General Calls for Data Center Protections Duke Energy Rate Increase Opposition
• Negative Sentiment: Storm-related outages left thousands of Duke customers without power, creating potential near-term restoration costs and reputational pressure. Duke Energy Power Outages

Duke Energy Trading Up 0.4%

Shares of NYSE DUK opened at $129.36 on Wednesday. The company’s fifty day moving average is $125.51 and its 200-day moving average is $126.02. The stock has a market cap of $100.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.81, a P/E/G ratio of 2.84 and a beta of 0.38. Duke Energy Corporation has a twelve month low of $113.89 and a twelve 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.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last issued 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. The business had revenue of $9.18 billion for 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 firm’s revenue was up 11.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.76 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Duke Energy Corporation will post 6.72 EPS for the current year.

Duke Energy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 14th will be issued a dividend of $1.085 per share. This is a boost from Duke Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.06. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 14th. This represents a $4.34 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.4%. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 65.24%.

Duke Energy Company 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.