Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) Receives $122.23 Consensus Price Target from Brokerages

Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) has earned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the thirteen brokerages that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and seven have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year price target among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $122.23.

Several research analysts recently commented on the company. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on Duke Energy from $122.00 to $118.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. Mizuho upgraded Duke Energy from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their price target for the company from $116.00 to $121.00 in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. Scotiabank increased their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $113.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, KeyCorp lowered shares of Duke Energy from an “overweight” rating to a “sector weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd.

Duke Energy Price Performance

NYSE DUK opened at $112.14 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $86.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.61, a P/E/G ratio of 2.73 and a beta of 0.49. Duke Energy has a 1 year low of $90.09 and a 1 year high of $121.25. The company has a current ratio of 0.70, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.55. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $110.09 and a 200 day simple moving average of $112.44.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The utilities provider reported $1.62 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.73 by ($0.11). The business had revenue of $8.16 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.06 billion. Duke Energy had a return on equity of 9.34% and a net margin of 14.31%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.94 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Duke Energy will post 5.91 EPS for the current year.

Duke Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be given a dividend of $1.045 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $4.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.73%. Duke Energy’s payout ratio is presently 76.84%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Duke Energy

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of DUK. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new position in shares of Duke Energy during the 3rd quarter worth about $29,000. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Duke Energy in the 3rd quarter valued at $30,000. Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new position in Duke Energy during the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. CGC Financial Services LLC grew its stake in Duke Energy by 366.7% in the fourth quarter. CGC Financial Services LLC now owns 308 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 242 shares during the period. Finally, Winch Advisory Services LLC raised its position in shares of Duke Energy by 332.9% during the fourth quarter. Winch Advisory Services LLC now owns 316 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 243 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.31% of the company’s stock.

About Duke Energy

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.