Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK) Stock Has Average Price Target of $132.19

Shares of Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK) have received an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the eighteen ratings firms that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and nine have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 12 month price target among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $132.19.

Several brokerages have commented on DUK. Scotiabank dropped their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $146.00 to $131.00 in a research note on Wednesday, September 30th. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on Duke Energy from $127.00 to $128.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 21st. HSBC started coverage on Duke Energy in a research report on Thursday, October 22nd. They issued a “hold” rating and a $123.00 target price on the stock. Truist Financial reduced their price target on Duke Energy from $135.00 to $130.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, October 12th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut Duke Energy from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, November 7th.

Duke Energy News Roundup

These are some of the DUK news items that stood out recently:

• Positive Sentiment: Duke Energy Florida plans four solar sites totaling 300 MW, paired with battery storage, and projects about $1 billion in customer savings over the projects’ lifetimes. The investment may support reliability and the company’s clean-energy plans. What Could Duke Energy Gain From Four New Florida Solar Sites?
• Neutral Sentiment: The Duke Energy Holiday Trains exhibit opening in Cincinnati is community news with little apparent near-term earnings impact. Duke Energy Holiday Trains
• Negative Sentiment: Florida regulators rejected Duke’s data-center plan, citing ratepayer-protection concerns, while the company’s push for more North Carolina gas plants to serve data centers faces opposition. These disputes could complicate plans to meet anticipated data-center demand. Florida regulators reject data-center plan Opposition to North Carolina gas plants

Duke Energy Stock Performance

DUK traded up $0.55 during trading on Friday, reaching $129.14. 7,585,007 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,332,092. Duke Energy has a 52 week low of $112.40 and a 52 week high of $134.49. The company has a current ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 0.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.49. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $120.67 and a 200 day moving average of $124.76. The stock has a market cap of $100.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.88, a PEG ratio of 2.99 and a beta of 0.33.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, November 5th. The utilities provider reported $1.99 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.86 by $0.13. Duke Energy had a return on equity of 9.82% and a net margin of 15.94%. The company had revenue of $9.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.91 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.81 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 6.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Duke Energy will post 6.74 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 13th will be paid a $1.0850 dividend. This represents a $4.34 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 13th. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 63.45%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Duke Energy news, EVP Bonnie Titone sold 2,900 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $128.00, for a total value of $371,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 26,111 shares in the company, valued at $3,342,208. This represents a 10.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 0.12% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Duke Energy

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in DUK. Acorns Advisers LLC grew its position in Duke Energy by 12.4% in the third quarter. Acorns Advisers LLC now owns 4,772 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $544,000 after buying an additional 526 shares during the last quarter. Perennial Investment Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 25.3% during the third quarter. Perennial Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,698 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $308,000 after purchasing an additional 545 shares during the last quarter. L2 Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 4.4% during the third quarter. L2 Asset Management LLC now owns 4,884 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $557,000 after purchasing an additional 205 shares during the last quarter. Financial Advisors Network Inc. boosted its position in shares of Duke Energy by 7.8% in the 3rd quarter. Financial Advisors Network Inc. now owns 5,129 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $585,000 after purchasing an additional 371 shares during the period. Finally, FLC Capital Advisors boosted its position in shares of Duke Energy by 16.9% in the 3rd quarter. FLC Capital Advisors now owns 3,571 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $407,000 after purchasing an additional 516 shares during the period. 65.31% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Duke Energy Company Profile

Duke Energy is a U.S. energy company focused primarily on regulated electric utilities and natural gas distribution. Its businesses generate, transmit and distribute electricity, and provide natural gas service to residential, commercial and industrial customers. The company serves electric customers in North Carolina, South Carolina, Florida, Indiana, Ohio and Kentucky. Its natural gas distribution operations serve customers in several states, including North Carolina, South Carolina, Ohio, Kentucky and Tennessee.