Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board Lowers Holdings in Duke Energy Corporation $DUK

Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board reduced its position in shares of Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK) by 70.3% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 4,085 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 9,688 shares during the period. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $506,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Simon Quick Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Duke Energy by 42.2% during the 2nd quarter. Simon Quick Advisors LLC now owns 7,444 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $878,000 after acquiring an additional 2,210 shares during the period. Farther Finance Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 37.7% during the third quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 41,642 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $5,153,000 after purchasing an additional 11,409 shares during the last quarter. Applied Finance Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Duke Energy in the third quarter valued at $1,046,000. Lockheed Martin Investment Management Co. grew its position in Duke Energy by 11.3% during the 3rd quarter. Lockheed Martin Investment Management Co. now owns 274,630 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $33,985,000 after purchasing an additional 27,820 shares during the period. Finally, Alley Investment Management Company LLC raised its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 13.0% during the 3rd quarter. Alley Investment Management Company LLC now owns 88,018 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $10,892,000 after buying an additional 10,108 shares during the last quarter. 65.31% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Duke Energy news, CEO Louis E. Renjel sold 6,800 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $127.67, for a total value of $868,156.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 22,007 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,809,633.69. This trade represents a 23.61% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.14% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently commented on DUK shares. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their target price on Duke Energy from $143.00 to $140.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 23rd. Mizuho set a $130.00 target price on shares of Duke Energy in a report on Tuesday, February 10th. Morgan Stanley reissued an “underperform” rating and set a $130.00 price target on shares of Duke Energy in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. UBS Group dropped their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $135.00 to $126.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, December 17th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $141.00 to $142.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 11th. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $135.19.

Duke Energy Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:DUK opened at $126.42 on Friday. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $119.63 and its 200-day moving average price is $121.95. Duke Energy Corporation has a 1 year low of $111.04 and a 1 year high of $130.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.54, a current ratio of 0.55 and a quick ratio of 0.33. The firm has a market capitalization of $98.31 billion, a PE ratio of 20.00, a P/E/G ratio of 2.72 and a beta of 0.51.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last announced its earnings results on Monday, February 9th. The utilities provider reported $1.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.49 by $0.01. Duke Energy had a net margin of 15.41% and a return on equity of 9.66%. The company had revenue of $7.94 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.57 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.66 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Duke Energy Corporation will post 6.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 13th will be issued a $1.065 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 13th. This represents a $4.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.4%. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 67.41%.

Duke Energy 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.