Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) Price Target Increased to $108.00 by Analysts at BMO Capital Markets

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) had its price objective boosted by analysts at BMO Capital Markets from $104.00 to $108.00 in a report issued on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an “outperform” rating on the utilities provider’s stock. BMO Capital Markets’ price objective points to a potential upside of 4.84% from the stock’s current price.

Other analysts have also issued research reports about the company. Scotiabank dropped their price objective on Duke Energy from $101.00 to $94.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 22nd. Evercore ISI raised shares of Duke Energy from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their price target for the company from $90.00 to $108.00 in a research report on Tuesday, January 23rd. Royal Bank of Canada upgraded shares of Duke Energy from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $101.00 to $113.00 in a research report on Wednesday, January 10th. Mizuho raised their target price on Duke Energy from $89.00 to $99.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, April 5th. Finally, Bank of America upped their price target on Duke Energy from $96.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $101.31.

Duke Energy Price Performance

Shares of Duke Energy stock opened at $103.01 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $79.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.02, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.67 and a beta of 0.45. The company has a fifty day moving average of $96.19 and a 200-day moving average of $94.42. Duke Energy has a 52-week low of $83.06 and a 52-week high of $103.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.50, a quick ratio of 0.49 and a current ratio of 0.74.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 7th. The utilities provider reported $1.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.39 by $0.05. Duke Energy had a return on equity of 8.93% and a net margin of 9.78%. The firm had revenue of $7.67 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.31 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.20 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that Duke Energy will post 5.98 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Louis E. Renjel sold 3,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.57, for a total value of $277,710.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 14,213 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,315,697.41. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.14% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Duke Energy

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC bought a new position in Duke Energy during the first quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Altshuler Shaham Ltd purchased a new stake in Duke Energy during the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Private Wealth Management Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Duke Energy in the 4th quarter worth $26,000. Riverview Trust Co purchased a new stake in Duke Energy during the first quarter valued at $30,000. Finally, Pacific Capital Wealth Advisors Inc. bought a new position in Duke Energy in the fourth quarter valued at about $31,000. 65.31% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.