3.53% Dividend Yield, 20 Years of Dividend Hikes – America's Largest Regulated Electric Utility
Picture a behemoth quietly powering eight states from the Northeast to the Southeast, serving millions with electricity and gas while navigating the shift from coal giants to clean energy frontrunners. It’s mastered massive grid upgrades, scooped up strategic assets to fuel growth, and consistently outpaced peers in customer additions amid booming industrial demand. What sets it apart? A rock-steady focus on regulated returns that turns population booms and tech surges into reliable revenue streams, all without the drama of wild commodity swings.
Duke Energy (DUK)
Financial Score: 86 / 99
Quick Tip
To keep your portfolio strong, stay on top of the financials for each company you hold. Solid companies mean better returns, so be sure to check in on their quarterly and annual numbers.Interesting stocks usually score 80+ on the Financial Scale, with top players hitting 90+. If that score dips below 80, it might be a good time to consider cutting ties before things take a turn.Duke Energy dominates the U.S. utility landscape as the nation’s biggest electric operator, delivering power to 8.9 million customers across six states plus gas to 1.7 million in Ohio and Kentucky. Spanning regulated electric and gas ops from the Midwest to Florida, it’s built an empire through hydro pioneers in the early 1900s, coal expansions mid-century, and now renewables plus nuclear backbone. Recent pivots include a $6B Brookfield stake sale in its Florida unit and plans to merge Carolinas subsidiaries for efficiency.
Payouts With Proven Pedigree
Duke’s $4.26 annual dividend clocks in at 3.53% yield after 20 years of uninterrupted hikes—a badge of honor in this game. Payout ratio of 66.98% strikes that sweet balance: ample coverage for ops yet room for the steady creep higher. Five-year growth hit 10%, modest but deliberate, rooted in conservative debt and recurring regulated cash that shrugs off weather whims or fuel spikes. It’s the kind of setup where you sleep easy knowing checks arrive like clockwork.
Q3 Financial Pulse Check
Duke’s freshest numbers hail from Q3 2025 (ended September 30, reported November 7, 2025), with revenues reaching $8.54 billion—up 4.7-4.8% YoY and beating estimates by 1.4%. Adjusted operating income reflected strength from rate cases and riders, though exact figure trails in summaries; net income supported GAAP EPS of $1.81 (beating Zacks $1.74 consensus by 4%, up 11.7% YoY).
Momentum Builders Unpacked
Duke added ~150,000 North Carolina customers in two years, hitting 3.6 million statewide as manufacturing influxes like $19B projects create 25,000 jobs. A landmark $6B Brookfield equity deal in Duke Energy Florida funds a $16B+ five-year capex hike through 2029, strengthening the balance sheet for grid hardening. The pending merger of Carolinas utilities (Duke Carolinas/Progress) eyes $1B customer savings by 2038 via rate leveling, filed post-Q3. Pipeline swells with data centers eyeing 2GW+ connections ramping 2027-2029, pushing load growth to 3-4%.
Cannon to Current
James B. Duke’s crew harnessed Catawba River hydro in 1904, but 1916’s twin hurricanes flooded stations 47 feet deep—prompting a literal cannon blast from founder James’ yacht to signal engineers mid-disaster, kickstarting resilient rebuilds that defined the company’s grit.
Final Take
Duke Energy bundles 3.53% yield, 20-year hikes, 66.98% payout, and 10% five-year growth into a dividend engine fueled by scale and regulation. Trends point steady: customer surges, M&A smarts, capex firepower amid electrification waves. Financial Score: 86. Intriguing profile merits metric deep-dive, but stops shy of 90+ bulletproof tier—eye regulatory drags and debt loads closely.
Someone’s sitting in the shade today because someone planted a tree a long time ago. ― Warren Buffett.
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