BMO Capital Markets Boosts Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) Price Target to $143.00

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) had its price objective increased by investment analysts at BMO Capital Markets from $136.00 to $143.00 in a research note issued to investors on Friday,MarketScreener reports. The firm currently has an “outperform” rating on the utilities provider’s stock. BMO Capital Markets’ price objective suggests a potential upside of 8.42% from the stock’s previous close.

Several other equities analysts have also weighed in on DUK. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $141.00 to $142.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 11th. Scotiabank increased their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $137.00 to $146.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 16th. BTIG Research reissued a “buy” rating and set a $141.00 target price on shares of Duke Energy in a research note on Friday, January 30th. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $136.00 to $140.00 in a research note on Monday, March 9th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Duke Energy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, March 28th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $139.33.

Duke Energy Trading Down 0.8%

Shares of Duke Energy stock opened at $131.90 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.54, a current ratio of 0.55 and a quick ratio of 0.33. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $128.82 and a 200 day moving average price of $123.90. Duke Energy has a 1 year low of $111.22 and a 1 year high of $134.49. The stock has a market cap of $102.63 billion, a PE ratio of 20.87 and a beta of 0.46.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last issued its earnings results on Monday, February 9th. The utilities provider reported $1.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.49 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $7.94 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.57 billion. Duke Energy had a net margin of 15.41% and a return on equity of 9.66%. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.66 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that Duke Energy will post 6.33 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Duke Energy news, SVP Regis T. Repko sold 962 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $127.86, for a total value of $123,001.32. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 3,896 shares in the company, valued at approximately $498,142.56. This trade represents a 19.80% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Louis E. Renjel sold 6,800 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction 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 completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 22,007 shares in the company, valued at $2,809,633.69. The trade was a 23.61% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Company insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Duke Energy

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 37.7% during the 3rd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 41,642 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $5,153,000 after purchasing an additional 11,409 shares during the period. Applied Finance Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Duke Energy in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $1,046,000. Lockheed Martin Investment Management Co. raised its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 11.3% in the 3rd quarter. Lockheed Martin Investment Management Co. now owns 274,630 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $33,985,000 after acquiring an additional 27,820 shares during the period. Alley Investment Management Company LLC raised its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 13.0% in the 3rd quarter. Alley Investment Management Company LLC now owns 88,018 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $10,892,000 after acquiring an additional 10,108 shares during the period. Finally, Greystone Financial Group LLC boosted its position in shares of Duke Energy by 12.7% during the third quarter. Greystone Financial Group LLC now owns 93,766 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $11,604,000 after buying an additional 10,580 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.31% of the company’s stock.

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.