BMO Capital Markets Increases Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) Price Target to $108.00

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) had its price objective upped by BMO Capital Markets from $104.00 to $108.00 in a research note published on Wednesday morning, Benzinga reports. BMO Capital Markets currently has an outperform rating on the utilities provider’s stock.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently issued reports on the company. Mizuho lifted their target price on Duke Energy from $89.00 to $99.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a report on Friday, April 5th. Evercore ISI raised shares of Duke Energy from an in-line rating to an outperform rating and upped their price objective for the company from $90.00 to $108.00 in a research note on Tuesday, January 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $103.00 to $100.00 and set an overweight rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 9th. Scotiabank cut their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $101.00 to $94.00 and set a sector perform rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 22nd. Finally, Barclays increased their target price on Duke Energy from $99.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a report on Monday, April 15th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $101.31.

Duke Energy Price Performance

NYSE DUK traded up $0.63 on Wednesday, reaching $103.01. 2,995,473 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,035,242. Duke Energy has a 12 month low of $83.06 and a 12 month high of $103.05. The company has a quick ratio of 0.49, a current ratio of 0.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.50. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $96.19 and its 200 day simple moving average is $94.42. The company has a market cap of $79.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.02, a P/E/G ratio of 2.67 and a beta of 0.45.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 7th. The utilities provider reported $1.44 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.39 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $7.67 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.31 billion. Duke Energy had a net margin of 9.78% and a return on equity of 8.93%. Duke Energy’s revenue was up 5.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.20 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Duke Energy will post 5.98 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Duke Energy

In related news, EVP Louis E. Renjel sold 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.57, for a total value of $277,710.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 14,213 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,315,697.41. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.14% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Duke Energy

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in DUK. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Duke Energy during the first quarter worth approximately $25,000. Altshuler Shaham Ltd bought a new stake in Duke Energy in the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Private Wealth Management Group LLC acquired a new stake in Duke Energy in the 4th quarter worth $26,000. Riverview Trust Co bought a new position in shares of Duke Energy during the 1st quarter worth about $30,000. Finally, Pacific Capital Wealth Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Duke Energy during the fourth quarter valued at about $31,000. 65.31% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.