California Public Employees Retirement System Has $452.30 Million Position in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

California Public Employees Retirement System reduced its holdings in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 1.1% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 4,660,977 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 51,619 shares during the period. California Public Employees Retirement System owned approximately 0.60% of Duke Energy worth $452,301,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. CKW Financial Group bought a new stake in Duke Energy in the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. FSC Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Duke Energy in the third quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Legacy Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in Duke Energy in the third quarter valued at approximately $45,000. Fortis Group Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Duke Energy in the third quarter valued at approximately $50,000. Finally, GHP Investment Advisors Inc. increased its stake in Duke Energy by 49.1% in the third quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 571 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $51,000 after purchasing an additional 188 shares in the last quarter. 65.31% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Duke Energy Stock Down 0.1 %

DUK stock traded down $0.13 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $98.11. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 2,932,991 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,017,579. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $94.20 and its 200 day moving average price is $93.43. Duke Energy Co. has a twelve month low of $83.06 and a twelve month high of $100.39. The stock has a market capitalization of $75.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.72, a PEG ratio of 2.61 and a beta of 0.46. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.50, a current ratio of 0.74 and a quick ratio of 0.49.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 8th. The utilities provider reported $1.51 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.53 by ($0.02). Duke Energy had a net margin of 9.78% and a return on equity of 8.93%. The firm had revenue of $7.21 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.24 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.11 EPS. The business’s revenue was down 1.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Duke Energy Co. will post 5.99 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Mizuho upped their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $89.00 to $99.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, April 5th. Bank of America raised their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $96.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, April 11th. Royal Bank of Canada upgraded shares of Duke Energy from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $101.00 to $113.00 in a report on Wednesday, January 10th. Evercore ISI upgraded shares of Duke Energy from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $90.00 to $108.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 23rd. Finally, BMO Capital Markets dropped their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $101.00 to $99.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 16th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $100.62.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Louis E. Renjel sold 3,000 shares of Duke Energy stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.57, for a total transaction of $277,710.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 14,213 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,315,697.41. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 0.14% of the company’s stock.

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.