Analysts Set Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) PT at $102.75

Shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) have received an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the eleven brokerages that are covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price objective among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $102.75.

Several equities analysts have weighed in on DUK shares. Bank of America lifted their price objective on Duke Energy from $96.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, April 11th. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $99.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, April 15th. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $108.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, May 20th. Scotiabank decreased their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $101.00 to $94.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 22nd. Finally, KeyCorp upped their target price on Duke Energy from $107.00 to $112.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, May 20th.

Duke Energy Stock Down 0.7 %

Shares of DUK opened at $100.06 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $100.54 and its 200 day simple moving average is $97.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.54, a quick ratio of 0.50 and a current ratio of 0.78. The firm has a market cap of $77.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.81 and a beta of 0.45. Duke Energy has a 52 week low of $83.06 and a 52 week high of $104.87.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 7th. The utilities provider reported $1.44 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.39 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $7.67 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.31 billion. Duke Energy had a return on equity of 9.25% and a net margin of 10.78%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.20 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Duke Energy will post 5.97 earnings per share for the current year.

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 17th. Investors of record on Friday, May 17th were issued a $1.025 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 16th. This represents a $4.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.10%. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 103.02%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Duke Energy

In related news, EVP Julia S. Janson sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $102.79, for a total value of $1,027,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 68,657 shares in the company, valued at $7,057,253.03. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Duke Energy news, EVP Julia S. Janson sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $102.79, for a total transaction of $1,027,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 68,657 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,057,253.03. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director E Marie Mckee sold 1,695 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 14th. The stock was 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 in the company, valued at approximately $409.24. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 26,695 shares of company stock worth $2,750,815. 0.14% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Duke Energy

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC bought a new stake in Duke Energy in the 1st quarter valued at about $25,000. Altshuler Shaham Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Duke Energy during the fourth quarter worth approximately $26,000. Private Wealth Management Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Duke Energy in the 4th quarter worth $26,000. Riverview Trust Co bought a new stake in Duke Energy during the 1st quarter valued at $30,000. Finally, Pacific Capital Wealth Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in Duke Energy during the fourth quarter worth $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.