Morgan Stanley Boosts Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) Price Target to $120.00

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) had its target price boosted by Morgan Stanley from $114.00 to $120.00 in a research report released on Wednesday morning, Benzinga reports. Morgan Stanley currently has an equal weight rating on the utilities provider’s stock.

Several other equities analysts have also weighed in on DUK. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on Duke Energy from $120.00 to $126.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a report on Wednesday, September 18th. Bank of America boosted their target price on Duke Energy from $116.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a report on Thursday, August 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Duke Energy from $111.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a report on Monday, August 12th. Scotiabank upped their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $104.00 to $113.00 and gave the stock a sector perform rating in a report on Tuesday, August 20th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $110.00 to $122.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Duke Energy presently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $116.79.

Duke Energy Stock Up 0.7 %

DUK opened at $115.94 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $89.48 billion, a PE ratio of 29.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.22 and a beta of 0.47. The business has a 50-day moving average of $113.50 and a 200-day moving average of $104.58. Duke Energy has a fifty-two week low of $83.06 and a fifty-two week high of $118.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.56, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.53.

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

Duke Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 16th. Investors of record on Friday, August 16th were paid a $1.045 dividend. This represents a $4.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.61%. This is a positive change from Duke Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.03. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 16th. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 105.03%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Louis E. Renjel sold 540 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $113.64, for a total transaction of $61,365.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 19,884 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,259,617.76. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC acquired a new stake in Duke Energy in the 1st quarter valued at $25,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 69.6% during 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. Riverview Trust Co acquired a new stake in shares of Duke Energy in the 1st quarter valued at $30,000. Olistico Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of Duke Energy in the 2nd quarter worth about $30,000. Finally, Cedar Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of Duke Energy by 101.2% during the 1st quarter. Cedar Wealth Management LLC now owns 336 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 169 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 65.31% of the company’s stock.

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.