Jennison Associates LLC Purchases Shares of 413,178 Duke Energy Corporation $DUK

Jennison Associates LLC purchased a new stake in Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 413,178 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $48,755,000.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in DUK. GQG Partners LLC raised its holdings in Duke Energy by 17,880.0% in 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 in the last quarter. Nuveen LLC acquired a new position in Duke Energy in the first quarter worth about $702,351,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 88.1% in the 1st quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. now owns 4,861,309 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $592,934,000 after buying an additional 2,276,948 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 2.3% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 74,562,000 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $9,094,327,000 after buying an additional 1,676,061 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. raised its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 359.1% in the 1st quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. now owns 1,132,613 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $138,145,000 after buying an additional 885,900 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.31% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on DUK. TD Cowen began coverage on Duke Energy in a report on Thursday, October 16th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $143.00 target price for the company. Wells Fargo & Company raised Duke Energy to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday. Royal Bank Of Canada raised Duke Energy to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday. BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on Duke Energy from $132.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, October 10th. Finally, Scotiabank set a $137.00 target price on Duke Energy and gave the stock 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 issued a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $138.00.

Duke Energy Stock Up 0.7%

NYSE DUK opened at $125.11 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $97.28 billion, a PE ratio of 20.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.05 and a beta of 0.44. Duke Energy Corporation has a one year low of $105.20 and a one year high of $130.03. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $123.89 and its 200 day simple moving average is $120.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.55, a current ratio of 0.66 and a quick ratio of 0.42.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The utilities provider reported $1.25 EPS 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 for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.07 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.18 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 4.7% on a year-over-year basis. Duke Energy has set its FY 2025 guidance at 6.170-6.420 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Duke Energy Corporation will post 6.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

Duke Energy 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.