Brokerages Set Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) Target Price at $101.85

Shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) have received an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the twelve ratings firms that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month target price among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $101.85.

DUK has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Mizuho raised their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $89.00 to $99.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, April 5th. KeyCorp boosted their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $107.00 to $112.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, May 20th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $103.00 to $100.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 9th. Barclays boosted their price objective on Duke Energy from $99.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, April 15th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on Duke Energy from $108.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, May 20th.

Duke Energy Stock Performance

Duke Energy stock opened at $102.17 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $78.85 billion, a PE ratio of 25.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.80 and a beta of 0.45. Duke Energy has a one year low of $83.06 and a one year high of $104.60. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $98.37 and its 200 day moving average price is $95.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.54, a quick ratio of 0.50 and a current ratio of 0.78.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 7th. The utilities provider reported $1.44 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.39 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $7.67 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.31 billion. Duke Energy had a net margin of 10.78% and a return on equity of 9.25%. The business’s revenue was up 5.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.20 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Duke Energy will post 5.97 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 17th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 17th will be given a dividend of $1.025 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 16th. This represents a $4.10 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.01%. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 103.02%.

Insider Activity at Duke Energy

In other Duke Energy news, Director E Marie Mckee sold 1,695 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $102.31, for a total value of $173,415.45. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 4 shares in the company, valued at approximately $409.24. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, CEO Lynn J. Good sold 15,000 shares of Duke Energy stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.30, for a total transaction of $1,549,500.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 437,464 shares in the company, valued at $45,190,031.20. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director E Marie Mckee sold 1,695 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $102.31, for a total transaction of $173,415.45. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 4 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $409.24. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 26,695 shares of company stock worth $2,750,815 in the last ninety days. 0.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Duke Energy

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in DUK. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC acquired a new stake in Duke Energy in the first quarter worth approximately $25,000. Altshuler Shaham Ltd bought a new position in Duke Energy during the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Private Wealth Management Group LLC acquired a new position in Duke Energy during the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Riverview Trust Co acquired a new stake in Duke Energy in the 1st quarter valued at about $30,000. Finally, Pacific Capital Wealth Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of Duke Energy during the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. 65.31% of the stock is currently 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.