Morgan Stanley Has Lowered Expectations for Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) Stock Price

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) had its price target decreased by Morgan Stanley from $122.00 to $118.00 in a note issued to investors on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an “equal weight” rating on the utilities provider’s stock. Morgan Stanley’s price target would indicate a potential upside of 2.88% from the stock’s current price.

A number of other research firms also recently commented on DUK. Scotiabank boosted their target price on Duke Energy from $104.00 to $113.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 20th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $102.00 to $113.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, August 12th. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of Duke Energy in a report on Thursday, September 19th. They set a “buy” rating and a $138.00 target price for the company. Bank of America increased their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $116.00 to $118.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on Duke Energy from $120.00 to $126.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 18th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $121.69.

Duke Energy Stock Down 0.1 %

Duke Energy stock opened at $114.70 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $115.14 and its 200 day moving average price is $109.74. The company has a market cap of $88.60 billion, a PE ratio of 21.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.03 and a beta of 0.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.55, a current ratio of 0.70 and a quick ratio of 0.45. Duke Energy has a 1-year low of $89.92 and a 1-year high of $121.25.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 7th. The utilities provider reported $1.62 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.73 by ($0.11). Duke Energy had a net margin of 14.31% and a return on equity of 9.34%. The company had revenue of $8.16 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.06 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.94 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Duke Energy will post 5.97 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Duke Energy

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. EntryPoint Capital LLC acquired a new position in Duke Energy in the first quarter valued at $36,000. 1832 Asset Management L.P. lifted its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 8.7% in the 1st quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. now owns 24,645 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,383,000 after purchasing an additional 1,964 shares in the last quarter. LRI Investments LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Duke Energy during the 1st quarter worth about $65,000. Kestra Advisory Services LLC raised its holdings in Duke Energy by 25.4% in the first quarter. Kestra Advisory Services LLC now owns 149,558 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $14,464,000 after buying an additional 30,273 shares during the period. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its position in Duke Energy by 1.4% during the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 1,203,916 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $116,431,000 after buying an additional 16,735 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.31% of the company’s stock.

Duke Energy Company Profile

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.