Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) Stock Rating Upgraded by Scotiabank

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) was upgraded by investment analysts at Scotiabank from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a note issued to investors on Friday, MarketBeat reports. The firm currently has a $137.00 price objective on the utilities provider’s stock. Scotiabank’s price objective would indicate a potential upside of 10.86% from the stock’s current price.

A number of other equities research analysts have also commented on the company. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on Duke Energy from $129.00 to $127.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, September 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Duke Energy from $127.00 to $131.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 21st. UBS Group reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $127.00 price target (up from $124.00) on shares of Duke Energy in a research report on Friday, July 11th. Barclays increased their price target on Duke Energy from $122.00 to $131.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 13th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group set a $132.00 price target on Duke Energy in a research report on Tuesday, July 1st. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $132.25.

Duke Energy Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:DUK opened at $123.58 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.42, a current ratio of 0.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.55. Duke Energy has a twelve month low of $105.20 and a twelve month high of $127.85. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $122.58 and its 200-day moving average is $119.62. The firm has a market capitalization of $96.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.09, a PEG ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 0.44.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The utilities provider reported $1.25 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.29 by ($0.04). The firm had revenue of $7.51 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.07 billion. Duke Energy had a return on equity of 9.85% and a net margin of 15.51%.Duke Energy’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.18 earnings per share. Duke Energy has set its FY 2025 guidance at 6.170-6.420 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Duke Energy will post 6.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Thomas Preston Jr. Gillespie sold 6,700 shares of Duke Energy stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $124.26, for a total value of $832,542.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 46,422 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,768,397.72. This trade represents a 12.61% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Bonnie B. Titone sold 2,000 shares of Duke Energy stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $124.38, for a total value of $248,760.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 19,608 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,438,843.04. This trade represents a 9.26% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.14% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Duke Energy

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. WealthShield Partners LLC increased its holdings in Duke Energy by 0.3% in the 2nd quarter. WealthShield Partners LLC now owns 25,453 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $3,003,000 after acquiring an additional 80 shares during the last quarter. Toth Financial Advisory Corp grew its holdings in Duke Energy by 31.6% during the 1st quarter. Toth Financial Advisory Corp now owns 346 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 83 shares in the last quarter. Reyes Financial Architecture Inc. increased its position in shares of Duke Energy by 4.8% during the first quarter. Reyes Financial Architecture Inc. now owns 1,827 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $223,000 after buying an additional 83 shares during the period. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Duke Energy by 2.8% during the first quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 3,034 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $370,000 after buying an additional 84 shares during the period. Finally, Lokken Investment Group LLC increased its position in shares of Duke Energy by 3.3% during the first quarter. Lokken Investment Group LLC now owns 2,633 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $321,000 after buying an additional 84 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.31% of the company’s stock.

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.