The Goldman Sachs Group Upgrades Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) to “Buy”

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) was upgraded by investment analysts at The Goldman Sachs Group from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note issued on Wednesday, MarketBeat Ratings reports. The brokerage presently has a $132.00 price target on the utilities provider’s stock, up from their previous price target of $125.00. The Goldman Sachs Group’s price objective indicates a potential upside of 13.41% from the stock’s previous close.

A number of other equities research analysts have also recently weighed in on the company. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Duke Energy from $127.00 to $138.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $130.00 to $142.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. Guggenheim increased their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $132.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Raymond James Financial initiated coverage on shares of Duke Energy in a research report on Friday, June 13th. They set a “market perform” rating for the company. Finally, Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $125.00 to $124.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, June 18th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $126.94.

Duke Energy Stock Up 0.4%

NYSE:DUK opened at $116.39 on Wednesday. Duke Energy has a 1-year low of $99.21 and a 1-year high of $125.27. The company has a 50-day moving average of $117.62 and a 200 day moving average of $115.01. The firm has a market cap of $90.47 billion, a PE ratio of 19.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.90 and a beta of 0.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.57, a current ratio of 0.77 and a quick ratio of 0.50.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The utilities provider reported $1.76 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.59 by $0.17. The firm had revenue of $8.25 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.70 billion. Duke Energy had a net margin of 15.40% and a return on equity of 9.88%. The company’s revenue was up 7.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.44 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Duke Energy will post 6.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Duke Energy

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Voya Investment Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 20.1% in the first quarter. Voya Investment Management LLC now owns 1,102,810 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $134,510,000 after purchasing an additional 184,891 shares during the last quarter. 1248 Management LLC purchased a new position in Duke Energy during the 1st quarter worth approximately $72,000. Blue Oak Capital LLC purchased a new position in Duke Energy during the 1st quarter worth approximately $206,000. Harold Davidson & Associates Inc. raised its position in Duke Energy by 17.3% during the 1st quarter. Harold Davidson & Associates Inc. now owns 3,531 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $431,000 after buying an additional 520 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Jones Financial Companies Lllp raised its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 32.5% during the first quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 677,924 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $81,174,000 after purchasing an additional 166,403 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors 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.