Bruce & Co. Inc. Sells 10,000 Shares of Duke Energy Corporation $DUK

Bruce & Co. Inc. decreased its holdings in Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK) by 6.4% during the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 145,816 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 10,000 shares during the period. Duke Energy accounts for approximately 5.5% of Bruce & Co. Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 7th biggest holding. Bruce & Co. Inc.’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $19,093,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of DUK. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 2.6% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 78,258,757 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $9,172,709,000 after buying an additional 1,957,592 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Duke Energy by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 19,292,633 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,266,675,000 after purchasing an additional 230,375 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Duke Energy by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 8,931,127 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,046,818,000 after purchasing an additional 58,375 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 13.1% in the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 8,236,893 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $965,446,000 after purchasing an additional 954,907 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp boosted its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 0.4% in the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 7,758,700 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $960,139,000 after purchasing an additional 31,703 shares during the last quarter. 65.31% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Key Stories Impacting Duke Energy

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

• Positive Sentiment: Duke Energy said data center growth should create billions of dollars in long-term customer savings and support responsible system expansion, reinforcing a constructive demand outlook for the utility. Duke Energy: Data center growth will deliver billions of dollars of customer savings
• Positive Sentiment: Duke Energy received its first advanced gas turbine, which should help it generate electricity more efficiently and support reliability and future capacity needs. Duke Energy receives first advanced gas turbine to generate electricity more efficiently
• Neutral Sentiment: Florida officials are moving toward extending Duke Energy’s service territory for decades, which may improve long-term visibility but does not appear to be an immediate earnings catalyst. As electric bills rise, Florida officials move toward 30 more years with Duke Energy
• Neutral Sentiment: A local outage in east Durham affected more than 2,000 customers during heavy rain, highlighting operational disruptions but likely having limited financial impact. More than 2,000 without power in east Durham amid heavy rain: Duke Energy
• Negative Sentiment: North Carolina’s attorney general said Duke Energy’s reduced rate increase is still too high, keeping regulatory pressure on the company’s pricing plans. NC attorney general says Duke Energy’s lowered rate increase is still too high
• Negative Sentiment: Reports of a stakeholder agreement cutting the residential rate increase to 9.5% suggest Duke may get less pricing relief than it initially sought. Duke Energy-stakeholder agreement pares down residential rate increase to 9.5% for 2 years

Insider Transactions at Duke Energy

In other Duke Energy news, CEO Harry K. Sideris sold 20,000 shares of the firm’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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,952,205.74. This trade represents a 17.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Louis E. Renjel sold 3,500 shares of the business’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 value 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 SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

Duke Energy Stock Up 1.1%

Duke Energy stock opened at $129.29 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $100.80 billion, a PE ratio of 19.80, a PEG ratio of 2.82 and a beta of 0.38. Duke Energy Corporation has a 12-month low of $113.89 and a 12-month high of $134.49. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $125.11 and its 200 day moving average is $125.75. 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 posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 4th. The utilities provider reported $1.93 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.87 by $0.06. Duke Energy had a net margin of 15.49% and a return on equity of 9.73%. The business had revenue of $9.18 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.44 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.76 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 11.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Duke Energy Corporation will post 6.72 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Increases Dividend

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

DUK has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. BTIG Research reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Duke Energy in a research note on Thursday. KeyCorp raised shares of Duke Energy from a “sector weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $139.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Thursday. Wall Street Zen upgraded Duke Energy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, March 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Duke Energy from $136.00 to $141.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 16th. Finally, Truist Financial upped their target price on Duke Energy from $137.00 to $138.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, July 17th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $138.62.

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.