Woodmont Investment Counsel LLC Trims Stock Holdings in Duke Energy Corporation $DUK

Woodmont Investment Counsel LLC cut its position in shares of Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK) by 11.2% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 153,083 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 19,315 shares during the period. Duke Energy comprises 1.3% of Woodmont Investment Counsel LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 19th biggest position. Woodmont Investment Counsel LLC’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $18,944,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC bought a new stake in Duke Energy during the second quarter valued at about $28,000. Mascoma Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 53.7% in the 2nd quarter. Mascoma Wealth Management LLC now owns 249 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 87 shares in the last quarter. Access Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Duke Energy in the 2nd quarter valued at about $31,000. Trifecta Capital Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Duke Energy by 2,284.6% in the 2nd quarter. Trifecta Capital Advisors LLC now owns 310 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $37,000 after buying an additional 297 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Meeder Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Duke Energy during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $39,000. Institutional investors own 65.31% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

DUK has been the topic of several analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $136.00 to $126.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, December 11th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on Duke Energy from $126.00 to $115.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 20th. Mizuho increased their price target on Duke Energy from $132.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, October 27th. Barclays dropped their price target on Duke Energy from $135.00 to $127.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 15th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $138.00 to $141.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 13th. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $134.50.

Duke Energy Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:DUK opened at $121.23 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 0.63, a quick ratio of 0.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.54. Duke Energy Corporation has a twelve month low of $110.51 and a twelve month high of $130.03. The company’s 50 day moving average is $118.17 and its 200 day moving average is $121.54. The company has a market cap of $94.28 billion, a PE ratio of 19.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 0.51.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, November 6th. The utilities provider reported $1.81 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.75 by $0.06. Duke Energy had a net margin of 15.76% and a return on equity of 9.98%. The firm had revenue of $8.54 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.51 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.62 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 4.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Duke Energy Corporation will post 6.33 EPS for the current year.

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 13th will be paid a $1.065 dividend. This represents a $4.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 13th. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 66.98%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Duke Energy

In other Duke Energy news, EVP Robert Alexander Glenn sold 8,200 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $123.80, for a total value of $1,015,160.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 11,367 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,407,234.60. This trade represents a 41.91% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.14% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

More Duke Energy News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Dividend — Duke declared a quarterly dividend of $1.065 per share, supporting yield-seeking investors and steady income appeal. Dividend Announcement
• Positive Sentiment: Higher near-term demand from cold snap — Prolonged low temperatures across the Carolinas and a cold spell in Florida are driving higher residential heating load, which should increase near-term revenue; Duke is also promoting customer assistance programs to manage bills. Higher Energy Use Florida Cold Spell
• Positive Sentiment: Operational resilience — Duke reports restoration of power to ~150,000 North Carolina homes and is mobilizing for an upcoming winter storm; messaging that outage risk is lower for snow vs. ice may limit prolonged service disruptions and related costs. Power Restoration Outage Risk
• Neutral Sentiment: Customer scam warnings — Multiple local outlets report impersonation texts and fake outage messages targeting Duke customers; the company is warning customers and advising precautions. This is a reputational/operational nuisance but not a direct earnings driver. Scam Warning
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst cut — RBC Capital trimmed its target on Duke, which can pressure sentiment and cap near-term upside from analyst-following investors. RBC Target Trim
• Negative Sentiment: Peaker gas-plant consideration — Duke is evaluating a Rockingham County site for potential gas-fired “peaker” plants; this could trigger local opposition, regulatory scrutiny and incremental capital spending. Peaker Plant Site
• Negative Sentiment: Political/PR risk — Coverage questions Duke’s involvement in campaigns opposing municipal moves in Pinellas County, which could heighten regulatory/political risk and negative public attention. Pinellas County Coverage

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.