Sumitomo Life Insurance Co. Increases Stock Holdings in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Sumitomo Life Insurance Co. increased its position in shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 2.8% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 9,510 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 262 shares during the period. Sumitomo Life Insurance Co.’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $1,097,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of DUK. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC bought a new position in shares of Duke Energy in the first quarter worth $25,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC increased its stake in Duke Energy by 69.6% in the 2nd quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 290 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 119 shares during the last quarter. Olistico Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Duke Energy in the 2nd quarter valued at about $30,000. Riverview Trust Co bought a new stake in shares of Duke Energy during the 1st quarter valued at about $30,000. Finally, Sachetta LLC grew its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 41.9% during the second quarter. Sachetta LLC now owns 325 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 96 shares in the last quarter. 65.31% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Duke Energy

In related news, EVP Louis E. Renjel sold 540 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $113.64, for a total transaction of $61,365.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 19,884 shares in the company, valued at $2,259,617.76. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

DUK has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $102.00 to $118.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. Mizuho upgraded shares of Duke Energy from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $116.00 to $121.00 in a research report on Tuesday. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on Duke Energy in a research report on Thursday, September 19th. They set a “buy” rating and a $138.00 price target on the stock. Bank of America upped their price objective on Duke Energy from $116.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, August 29th. Finally, Evercore ISI raised their price objective on Duke Energy from $108.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $121.85.

Duke Energy Stock Performance

NYSE:DUK opened at $119.80 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.56, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a current ratio of 0.81. Duke Energy Co. has a fifty-two week low of $85.79 and a fifty-two week high of $120.09. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $114.67 and a 200-day moving average price of $106.40. The firm has a market cap of $92.46 billion, a PE ratio of 30.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.06 and a beta of 0.46.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The utilities provider reported $1.18 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.02 by $0.16. The business had revenue of $7.17 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.84 billion. Duke Energy had a net margin of 14.29% and a return on equity of 9.71%. The company’s revenue was up 9.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.91 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Duke Energy Co. will post 5.97 earnings per share for the current year.

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be issued a $1.045 dividend. This represents a $4.18 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.49%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 15th. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 105.03%.

Duke Energy Company 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.