Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) PT Raised to $118.00 at Barclays

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) had its price objective hoisted by Barclays from $102.00 to $118.00 in a report issued on Tuesday morning, Benzinga reports. Barclays currently has an overweight rating on the utilities provider’s stock.

A number of other research analysts have also weighed in on the company. KeyCorp raised their price objective on Duke Energy from $121.00 to $125.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research report on Monday. Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on Duke Energy from $108.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. Bank of America increased their target price on Duke Energy from $116.00 to $118.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $111.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a research report on Monday, August 12th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $102.00 to $113.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a research note on Monday, August 12th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $118.21.

Duke Energy Stock Performance

NYSE:DUK opened at $116.22 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $113.83 and a 200 day moving average price of $105.00. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.56. Duke Energy has a 12-month low of $83.06 and a 12-month high of $118.31. The stock has a market capitalization of $89.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.20, a P/E/G ratio of 3.22 and a beta of 0.47.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 6th. The utilities provider reported $1.18 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.02 by $0.16. The firm had revenue of $7.17 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.84 billion. Duke Energy had a net margin of 14.29% and a return on equity of 9.71%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.91 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that Duke Energy will post 5.97 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 16th. Investors of record on Friday, August 16th were given a $1.045 dividend. This is a positive change from Duke Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.03. This represents a $4.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.60%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 16th. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio is 105.03%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Duke Energy

In other news, EVP Louis E. Renjel sold 540 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $113.64, for a total value of $61,365.60. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 19,884 shares in the company, valued at $2,259,617.76. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Company insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Duke Energy

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Duke Energy during the first quarter valued at $25,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC lifted its holdings in Duke Energy by 69.6% during the 2nd quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 290 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 119 shares in the last quarter. Riverview Trust Co purchased a new stake in Duke Energy in the 1st quarter valued at about $30,000. Olistico Wealth LLC bought a new position in Duke Energy in the 2nd quarter worth about $30,000. Finally, Cedar Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of Duke Energy by 101.2% during the first quarter. Cedar Wealth Management LLC now owns 336 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 169 shares during the period. 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.