Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) Receives Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) have been assigned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the thirteen analysts that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price target among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $121.85.

Several research firms have issued reports on DUK. Scotiabank upped their price objective on Duke Energy from $104.00 to $113.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Duke Energy from $111.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, August 12th. KeyCorp downgraded shares of Duke Energy from an “overweight” rating to a “sector weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $102.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. Finally, Bank of America upped their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $116.00 to $118.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 29th.

Duke Energy Trading Down 0.5 %

NYSE DUK opened at $111.89 on Wednesday. Duke Energy has a 12 month low of $86.61 and a 12 month high of $121.25. The company has a current ratio of 0.70, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.55. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $115.81 and a 200-day moving average of $108.97. The company has a market cap of $86.40 billion, a PE ratio of 20.57, a PEG ratio of 3.09 and a beta of 0.47.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 7th. The utilities provider reported $1.62 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.73 by ($0.11). The firm had revenue of $8.16 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.06 billion. Duke Energy had a net margin of 14.31% and a return on equity of 9.34%. The business’s revenue was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.94 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Duke Energy will post 5.97 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Friday, November 15th will be given a dividend of $1.045 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 15th. This represents a $4.18 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.74%. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio is 76.84%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Duke Energy

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC acquired a new position in Duke Energy during the third quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC raised its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 69.6% during the 2nd quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 290 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 119 shares in the last quarter. Olistico Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in Duke Energy in the second quarter valued at about $30,000. Sachetta LLC grew its position in Duke Energy by 41.9% in the second quarter. Sachetta LLC now owns 325 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 96 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Reston Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Duke Energy during the third quarter worth about $38,000. 65.31% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.