Zacks Research Forecasts Reduced Earnings for Duke Energy

Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) – Analysts at Zacks Research cut their FY2024 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for shares of Duke Energy in a research note issued on Thursday, November 28th. Zacks Research analyst A. Dutta now expects that the utilities provider will post earnings of $5.92 per share for the year, down from their prior forecast of $5.96. The consensus estimate for Duke Energy’s current full-year earnings is $5.96 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Duke Energy’s Q4 2024 earnings at $1.68 EPS, Q4 2025 earnings at $1.83 EPS, Q2 2026 earnings at $1.42 EPS and FY2026 earnings at $6.68 EPS.

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 analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.73 by ($0.11). The firm had revenue of $8.16 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.06 billion. Duke Energy had a return on equity of 9.34% and a net margin of 14.31%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.94 EPS.

A number of other brokerages have also recently commented on DUK. Mizuho upgraded Duke Energy from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $116.00 to $121.00 in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. Bank of America lifted their target price on Duke Energy from $116.00 to $118.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 29th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $120.00 to $126.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 18th. KeyCorp cut Duke Energy from an “overweight” rating to a “sector weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $122.00 to $118.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Duke Energy currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $121.69.

Duke Energy Stock Performance

NYSE:DUK opened at $115.17 on Monday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $115.18 and a 200-day simple moving average of $110.29. 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 $90.09 and a 1-year high of $121.25. The firm has a market cap of $88.97 billion, a PE ratio of 21.17, a P/E/G ratio of 3.09 and a beta of 0.47.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Duke Energy

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC bought a new stake in shares of Duke Energy during the third quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC purchased a new stake in Duke Energy during the 3rd quarter worth about $30,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC boosted its position in shares of Duke Energy by 69.6% in the second 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. Olistico Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of Duke Energy during the 2nd quarter valued at $30,000. Finally, Sachetta LLC increased its stake in Duke Energy by 41.9% in the 2nd quarter. Sachetta LLC now owns 325 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 96 shares during the last quarter. 65.31% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Duke Energy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be given a $1.045 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 15th. This represents a $4.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.63%. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 76.84%.

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.