BMO Capital Markets Raises Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) Price Target to $128.00

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) had its target price boosted by research analysts at BMO Capital Markets from $123.00 to $128.00 in a research report issued on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an “outperform” rating on the utilities provider’s stock. BMO Capital Markets’ price objective would indicate a potential upside of 9.69% from the company’s current price.

Several other research analysts have also issued reports on DUK. Scotiabank increased their price target 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. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $122.00 to $118.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $129.00 to $132.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. Finally, Guggenheim raised their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $132.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Duke Energy currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $122.93.

Duke Energy Trading Down 0.9 %

Duke Energy stock opened at $116.69 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.52, a current ratio of 0.67 and a quick ratio of 0.44. The company has a market capitalization of $90.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.44, a PEG ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.48. Duke Energy has a one year low of $92.75 and a one year high of $121.25. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $112.40 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $113.36.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The utilities provider reported $1.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.61 by $0.05. Duke Energy had a net margin of 14.90% and a return on equity of 9.50%. On average, analysts forecast that Duke Energy will post 6.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of DUK. Bailard Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 10.9% in the fourth quarter. Bailard Inc. now owns 31,921 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $3,439,000 after purchasing an additional 3,139 shares during the last quarter. KMG Fiduciary Partners LLC increased its holdings in Duke Energy by 5.5% during the fourth quarter. KMG Fiduciary Partners LLC now owns 52,097 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $5,613,000 after buying an additional 2,705 shares during the last quarter. First Business Financial Services Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Duke Energy in the fourth quarter worth about $384,000. Pines Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Duke Energy in the fourth quarter worth about $1,032,000. Finally, CCM Investment Advisers LLC increased its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 24.3% in the fourth quarter. CCM Investment Advisers LLC now owns 83,610 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $9,008,000 after purchasing an additional 16,356 shares in the last quarter. 65.31% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.