Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. Sells 109,460 Shares of Duke Energy Corporation $DUK

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. cut its stake in Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK) by 5.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,875,583 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 109,460 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. owned 0.24% of Duke Energy worth $219,837,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Dorato Capital Management bought a new stake in shares of Duke Energy during the fourth quarter worth approximately $26,000. KERR FINANCIAL PLANNING Corp bought a new stake in shares of Duke Energy during the third quarter worth approximately $27,000. Lodestone Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Duke Energy during the fourth quarter worth approximately $30,000. Wiser Advisor Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Duke Energy during the third quarter worth approximately $34,000. Finally, Bare Financial Services Inc raised its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 211.1% during the third quarter. Bare Financial Services Inc now owns 280 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 190 shares during the last quarter. 65.31% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently weighed in on DUK. Evercore reissued an “in-line” rating and set a $139.00 price target on shares of Duke Energy in a research note on Thursday, March 5th. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $143.00 to $140.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 23rd. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $136.00 to $140.00 in a research note on Monday, March 9th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $125.00 to $141.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 17th. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $139.00 target price on shares of Duke Energy in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Duke Energy currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $139.33.

Insider Activity at Duke Energy

In other news, CEO Louis E. Renjel sold 6,800 shares of the company’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 completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 22,007 shares in the company, valued at $2,809,633.69. This represents a 23.61% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Regis T. Repko sold 962 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $127.86, for a total transaction of $123,001.32. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 3,896 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $498,142.56. This trade represents a 19.80% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 0.12% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Duke Energy Stock Up 0.1%

Shares of NYSE:DUK opened at $131.90 on Monday. Duke Energy Corporation has a 52 week low of $111.22 and a 52 week high of $134.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.54, a quick ratio of 0.33 and a current ratio of 0.55. The company has a market capitalization of $102.63 billion, a PE ratio of 20.87 and a beta of 0.46. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $128.82 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $123.90.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last issued its earnings results on Monday, February 9th. The utilities provider reported $1.50 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.49 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $7.94 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.57 billion. Duke Energy had a net margin of 15.41% and a return on equity of 9.66%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.66 earnings per share. Analysts forecast that Duke Energy Corporation will post 6.33 earnings per share for the current year.

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.