First National Trust Co Cuts Stake in Duke Energy Corporation $DUK

First National Trust Co reduced its position in shares of Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK) by 1.3% in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 15,436 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 210 shares during the quarter. First National Trust Co’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $1,821,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Duke Energy by 2.3% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 74,562,000 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $9,094,327,000 after acquiring an additional 1,676,061 shares during the last quarter. GQG Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of Duke Energy by 17,880.0% during the 1st quarter. GQG Partners LLC now owns 10,249,508 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,250,133,000 after acquiring an additional 10,192,503 shares during the last quarter. Royal Bank of Canada boosted its position in shares of Duke Energy by 4.9% during the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 8,921,517 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,088,158,000 after acquiring an additional 418,014 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Duke Energy by 1.1% during the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 8,656,244 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,055,087,000 after acquiring an additional 93,699 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp boosted its position in shares of Duke Energy by 1.9% during the 1st quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 8,153,615 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $994,496,000 after acquiring an additional 152,542 shares during the last quarter. 65.31% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently commented on DUK shares. Barclays increased their target price on Duke Energy from $131.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 14th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Duke Energy from $127.00 to $136.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on Duke Energy from $134.00 to $138.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 15th. Mizuho increased their price target on Duke Energy from $132.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday. Finally, Scotiabank set a $137.00 price target on Duke Energy and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a report on Friday, October 3rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Duke Energy presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $138.00.

Duke Energy Stock Performance

DUK stock opened at $125.70 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.42, a current ratio of 0.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.55. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $123.87 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $120.64. Duke Energy Corporation has a twelve month low of $105.20 and a twelve month high of $130.03. The firm has a market cap of $97.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.44, a PEG ratio of 3.13 and a beta of 0.44.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The utilities provider reported $1.25 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.29 by ($0.04). Duke Energy had a return on equity of 9.85% and a net margin of 15.51%.The business had revenue of $7.51 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.07 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.18 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.7% on a year-over-year basis. Duke Energy has set its FY 2025 guidance at 6.170-6.420 EPS. Analysts predict that Duke Energy Corporation will post 6.33 earnings per share for the current year.

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 14th will be paid a $1.065 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 14th. This represents a $4.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.4%. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 69.27%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Duke Energy news, SVP Bonnie B. Titone sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $124.38, for a total value of $248,760.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 19,608 shares in the company, valued at $2,438,843.04. This trade represents a 9.26% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Thomas Preston Jr. Gillespie sold 6,700 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $124.26, for a total value of $832,542.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 46,422 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,768,397.72. This represents a 12.61% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Company insiders own 0.14% of the company’s stock.

Duke Energy Company Profile

Duke Energy Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, operates as an energy company in the United States. It operates through two segments: Electric Utilities and Infrastructure (EU&I), and Gas Utilities and Infrastructure (GU&I). The EU&I segment generates, transmits, distributes, and sells electricity in the Carolinas, Florida, and the Midwest.