31,000 Shares in Duke Energy Corporation $DUK Purchased by KCM Capital Inc

KCM Capital Inc bought a new position in Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK) during the first quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor bought 31,000 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $4,059,000. Duke Energy comprises about 0.7% of KCM Capital Inc’s holdings, making the stock its 22nd biggest holding.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Sharp Wealth Advisory LLC grew its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 4.5% during the first quarter. Sharp Wealth Advisory LLC now owns 1,876 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $246,000 after purchasing an additional 81 shares in the last quarter. Absher Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Duke Energy by 2.3% in the first quarter. Absher Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,648 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $478,000 after purchasing an additional 81 shares in the last quarter. A4 Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in Duke Energy by 3.3% during the fourth quarter. A4 Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,597 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $304,000 after purchasing an additional 82 shares during the last quarter. Elm Partners Management LLC grew its stake in Duke Energy by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Elm Partners Management LLC now owns 9,254 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,085,000 after buying an additional 83 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CYBER HORNET ETFs LLC grew its stake in Duke Energy by 4.1% in the 3rd quarter. CYBER HORNET ETFs LLC now owns 2,113 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $261,000 after buying an additional 83 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.31% 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 reached a North Carolina rate settlement that significantly trims the proposed increase, which could improve the outlook for future revenue and reduce uncertainty for investors.
• Positive Sentiment: The company was highlighted as a trending stock, suggesting increased investor attention and trading interest around Duke Energy shares.
• Positive Sentiment: Duke Energy also received coverage tied to dividend growth and data-center demand trends, reinforcing the stock’s appeal as a defensive income name with growth catalysts.
• Neutral Sentiment: Duke Energy awarded $35,000 to West Terre Haute nonprofits, a positive community-relations item but not likely to materially affect the stock price.
• Negative Sentiment: North Carolina officials, including the attorney general, continue to push back on the rate settlement, keeping regulatory scrutiny elevated and leaving some downside risk if approvals become more difficult.
• Negative Sentiment: News that Duke Energy ended a wind lease off the North Carolina coast adds a bit of uncertainty around its clean-energy strategy, though the immediate financial impact appears limited.

Insider Activity at Duke Energy

In other Duke Energy news, CEO Harry K. Sideris sold 20,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $124.37, for a total value of $2,487,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 96,102 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,952,205.74. The trade was a 17.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Louis E. Renjel sold 3,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $125.15, for a total value of $438,025.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 21,415 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,680,087.25. This trade represents a 14.05% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently weighed in on DUK shares. BMO Capital Markets lowered their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $138.00 to $134.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Duke Energy in a research report on Monday, May 4th. BTIG Research reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $139.00 price objective on shares of Duke Energy in a report on Tuesday, June 2nd. Wall Street Zen raised Duke Energy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, March 28th. Finally, UBS Group dropped their target price on Duke Energy from $137.00 to $135.00 in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $138.60.

Duke Energy Stock Performance

Duke Energy stock opened at $127.96 on Thursday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $125.00 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $125.67. 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 Corporation has a twelve month low of $113.89 and a twelve month high of $134.49. The company has a market capitalization of $99.76 billion, a PE ratio of 19.60, a P/E/G ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 0.38.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 4th. The utilities provider reported $1.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 firm had revenue of $9.18 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.44 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.76 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that Duke Energy Corporation will post 6.72 EPS for the current year.

Duke Energy Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 14th will be paid a $1.085 dividend. This is an increase from Duke Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.06. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 14th. This represents a $4.34 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.4%. Duke Energy’s payout ratio is presently 65.24%.

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.