BMO Capital Markets Increases Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) Price Target to $126.00

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) had its price objective raised by research analysts at BMO Capital Markets from $120.00 to $126.00 in a research report issued on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an “outperform” rating on the utilities provider’s stock. BMO Capital Markets’ price objective would suggest a potential upside of 9.43% from the company’s current price.

A number of other research firms also recently issued reports on DUK. Bank of America boosted their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $116.00 to $118.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, August 29th. Evercore ISI increased their price target on Duke Energy from $108.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on Duke Energy from $102.00 to $113.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, August 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Duke Energy from $111.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, August 12th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Duke Energy from $110.00 to $122.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $116.36.

Duke Energy Price Performance

Duke Energy stock opened at $115.14 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $88.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.93, a PEG ratio of 3.19 and a beta of 0.47. 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’s 50 day moving average is $112.33 and its 200-day moving average is $103.66.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 6th. The utilities provider reported $1.18 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.02 by $0.16. Duke Energy had a return on equity of 9.71% and a net margin of 14.29%. The firm had revenue of $7.17 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.84 billion. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.91 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Duke Energy will post 5.97 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Duke Energy news, EVP Louis E. Renjel sold 540 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $113.64, for a total transaction of $61,365.60. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 19,884 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,259,617.76. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 0.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Duke Energy

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in DUK. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC bought a new position in Duke Energy in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC increased its position in Duke Energy by 69.6% in the 2nd quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 290 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 119 shares during the period. Riverview Trust Co bought a new position in shares of Duke Energy during the first quarter valued at $30,000. Olistico Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of Duke Energy during the second quarter worth $30,000. Finally, Cedar Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in Duke Energy by 101.2% in the first quarter. Cedar Wealth Management LLC now owns 336 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 169 shares during the period. 65.31% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.