Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) Price Target Raised to $136.00

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) had its price target hoisted by Wells Fargo & Company from $135.00 to $136.00 in a research report sent to investors on Monday, MarketBeat reports. The brokerage currently has an equal weight rating on the utilities provider’s stock.

DUK has been the subject of a number of other reports. Morgan Stanley set a $139.00 price objective on shares of Duke Energy in a report on Friday, February 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $138.00 to $139.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 15th. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $127.00 to $143.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 7th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $125.00 to $141.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 17th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on Duke Energy from $136.00 to $143.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, April 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $140.50.

Duke Energy Trading Down 0.3%

Shares of DUK opened at $125.23 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.54, a current ratio of 0.55 and a quick ratio of 0.33. Duke Energy has a 1 year low of $111.22 and a 1 year high of $134.49. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $129.70 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $124.19. The firm has a market cap of $97.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.82 and a beta of 0.46.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 9th. The utilities provider reported $1.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.49 by $0.01. Duke Energy had a net margin of 15.41% and a return on equity of 9.66%. The business had revenue of $7.94 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.57 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.66 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Duke Energy will post 6.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, SVP Regis T. Repko sold 962 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $127.86, for a total transaction of $123,001.32. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 3,896 shares in the company, valued at approximately $498,142.56. This represents a 19.80% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Louis E. Renjel sold 6,800 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $127.67, for a total value of $868,156.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 22,007 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,809,633.69. This represents a 23.61% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 0.12% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Duke Energy

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of DUK. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in Duke Energy by 2.6% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 78,258,757 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $9,172,709,000 after buying an additional 1,957,592 shares during the last quarter. Amundi lifted its position in Duke Energy by 56.9% in the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 2,662,460 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $312,067,000 after buying an additional 965,808 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its position in Duke Energy by 13.1% in the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 8,236,893 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $965,446,000 after buying an additional 954,907 shares during the last quarter. Milford Funds Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of Duke Energy during the fourth quarter worth $97,905,000. Finally, Cohen & Steers Inc. lifted its position in shares of Duke Energy by 83.3% during the fourth quarter. Cohen & Steers Inc. now owns 1,711,445 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $200,598,000 after purchasing an additional 777,878 shares during the last quarter. 65.31% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Key Stories Impacting Duke Energy

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

• Positive Sentiment: Truist upgraded DUK to “strong-buy,” which can support near?term buying interest from income/value investors. Truist upgrades Duke Energy to strong-buy (via Zacks)
• Positive Sentiment: Broker consensus remains constructive: reports show an average broker rating of “Moderate Buy” and a Wells Fargo analyst projecting upside, which underpins medium?term analyst support. Duke Energy Receives Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages Duke Energy Stock Price Expected to Rise, Wells Fargo Says
• Neutral Sentiment: Duke Energy Foundation awarded $275,000 in America250 grants for South Carolina green?space projects. Good PR/ESG signal but immaterial to financials. Duke Energy Foundation announces America250 grants (PR Newswire)
• Neutral Sentiment: Company publicity about lineworkers advancing to an international rodeo highlights operational competence and reliability messaging; unlikely to move the stock materially. Powering Reliability: Duke Energy lineworkers sharpen skills (PR Newswire)
• Negative Sentiment: Morgan Stanley trimmed its price target slightly to $141 and kept an “equal weight” rating — a modest negative that could cap upside until clearer catalysts emerge. Morgan Stanley adjusts price target on Duke Energy to $141 (MarketScreener)
• Negative Sentiment: Market coverage noting DUK’s intraday/overnight decline (larger than the broad market) may prompt short?term selling or reduced momentum among momentum traders. Duke Energy sees a more significant dip than broader market (Yahoo Finance)

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.