Mizuho Issues Pessimistic Forecast for Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) Stock Price

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) had its target price decreased by Mizuho from $139.00 to $135.00 in a note issued to investors on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an “outperform” rating on the utilities provider’s stock. Mizuho’s price target would suggest a potential upside of 9.11% from the stock’s previous close.

Several other equities analysts also recently issued reports on the stock. UBS Group decreased their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $137.00 to $135.00 in a report on Monday, May 11th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $141.00 to $132.00 in a report on Thursday, May 21st. Evercore increased their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $139.00 to $140.00 in a report on Monday, May 11th. BMO Capital Markets reduced their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $139.00 to $138.00 in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Finally, Barclays reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $134.00 target price on shares of Duke Energy in a research report on Thursday. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $138.07.

Duke Energy Stock Performance

DUK opened at $123.73 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 0.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.45. The company has a market cap of $96.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.95 and a beta of 0.39. Duke Energy has a 52-week low of $113.89 and a 52-week high of $134.49. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $125.74 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $124.06.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 4th. The utilities provider reported $1.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.87 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $9.18 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.44 billion. Duke Energy had a net margin of 15.49% and a return on equity of 9.73%. The company’s revenue was up 11.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.76 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Duke Energy will post 6.71 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Duke Energy

In other news, CEO Harry K. Sideris sold 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $124.37, for a total value of $2,487,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 96,102 shares in the company, valued at $11,952,205.74. This represents a 17.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Louis E. Renjel sold 3,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $125.15, for a total transaction of $438,025.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 21,415 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,680,087.25. The trade was a 14.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 0.12% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Duke Energy

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in Duke Energy by 2.6% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 78,258,757 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $9,172,709,000 after purchasing an additional 1,957,592 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in Duke Energy by 1.2% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 19,292,633 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,266,675,000 after purchasing an additional 230,375 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in Duke Energy by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 8,931,127 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,046,818,000 after purchasing an additional 58,375 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its position in Duke Energy by 13.1% during the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 8,236,893 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $965,446,000 after purchasing an additional 954,907 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp increased its position in Duke Energy by 0.4% during the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 7,758,700 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $960,139,000 after purchasing an additional 31,703 shares during the last quarter. 65.31% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Key Headlines Impacting Duke Energy

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

• Negative Sentiment: A state consumer advocate said Duke Energy may be overcharging customers, which could increase regulatory scrutiny and raise concerns about future rate approvals. State consumer advocate says Duke overcharging its customers
• Negative Sentiment: A pro-coal state regulator will not participate in Duke Energy’s Carbon Plan decisions, adding uncertainty around a key long-term strategy tied to the company’s energy transition and future capital plans. Pro-coal state regulator won’t participate in Duke Energy Carbon Plan decisions
• Negative Sentiment: Duke Energy reported multiple power outages affecting customers in Vigo County and the Pee Dee, which can weigh on sentiment if investors see them as signs of service reliability issues. Over 1,000 Vigo Co. Duke Energy customers without power Wednesday night Duke Energy reports power restored after 2K+ were without it in the Pee Dee
• Neutral Sentiment: Clearwater is appraising Duke Energy property as it evaluates whether to move away from the utility, a development to watch but not yet a clear financial hit. Clearwater appraises Duke Energy property as it investigates ditching the utility
• Neutral Sentiment: Duke Energy’s safety demonstrations for law enforcement and its foundation grants in Florida are largely public-relations and community-relations items with limited near-term stock impact. Duke Energy provides safety demonstration for Pinellas County law enforcement Duke Energy Foundation grants $77,500 to expand access to civic learning and remembrance across Florida
• Neutral Sentiment: The headline about Duke Energy trading lower reflects broad market weakness and recent price action, but it does not add new company-specific catalysts beyond the concerns above. Duke Energy (DUK) Declines More Than Market: Some Information for Investors

About Duke Energy

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.