Scotiabank Raises Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) Price Target to $104.00

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) had its target price raised by Scotiabank from $94.00 to $104.00 in a report published on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. Scotiabank currently has a sector perform rating on the utilities provider’s stock.

A number of other equities analysts have also issued reports on DUK. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $103.00 to $98.00 and set an equal weight rating for the company in a research report on Monday, June 24th. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on Duke Energy from $114.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a research note on Wednesday. KeyCorp raised their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $112.00 to $114.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $108.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted 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. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Duke Energy has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $106.75.

Duke Energy Trading Up 0.0 %

Shares of DUK traded up $0.04 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $113.55. 1,618,144 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,952,754. Duke Energy has a 12 month low of $83.06 and a 12 month high of $116.67. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $104.25 and its two-hundred day moving average is $99.19. The stock has a market cap of $87.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.60, a P/E/G ratio of 3.09 and a beta of 0.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.54, a current ratio of 0.78 and a quick ratio of 0.50.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The utilities provider reported $1.18 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.02 by $0.16. Duke Energy had a return on equity of 9.25% and a net margin of 10.78%. The company had revenue of $7.17 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.84 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.91 earnings per share. Duke Energy’s revenue was up 9.0% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts forecast that Duke Energy will post 5.97 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 16th. Investors of record on Friday, August 16th will be given a dividend of $1.045 per share. This represents a $4.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.68%. This is an increase from Duke Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.03. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 16th. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 105.03%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Duke Energy

In other Duke Energy news, Director E Marie Mckee sold 1,695 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $102.31, for a total transaction of $173,415.45. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 4 shares in the company, valued at $409.24. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, Director E Marie Mckee sold 1,695 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $102.31, for a total transaction of $173,415.45. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 4 shares in the company, valued at $409.24. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Lynn J. Good sold 15,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.30, for a total transaction of $1,549,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 437,464 shares in the company, valued at $45,190,031.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Duke Energy during the 1st quarter worth $25,000. Altshuler Shaham Ltd purchased a new position in Duke Energy in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Private Wealth Management Group LLC acquired a new position in Duke Energy during the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC boosted its position in Duke Energy by 69.6% during the second quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 290 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 119 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Riverview Trust Co acquired a new stake in Duke Energy in the first quarter valued at $30,000. 65.31% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.