UBS Group Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) Stock

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) had its target price boosted by UBS Group from $123.00 to $127.00 in a report released on Friday morning,Benzinga reports. UBS Group currently has a neutral rating on the utilities provider’s stock.

Several other analysts have also issued reports on DUK. Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on Duke Energy from $129.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on Duke Energy from $123.00 to $128.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Guggenheim raised their price objective on Duke Energy from $132.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on Duke Energy from $123.00 to $128.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Scotiabank raised their price objective on Duke Energy from $113.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $123.87.

Duke Energy Stock Down 1.0 %

DUK stock opened at $119.01 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $92.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.84, a PEG ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.48. Duke Energy has a fifty-two week low of $92.75 and a fifty-two week high of $121.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.52, a current ratio of 0.67 and a quick ratio of 0.44. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $114.16 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $113.69.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The utilities provider reported $1.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.61 by $0.05. Duke Energy had a return on equity of 9.50% and a net margin of 14.90%. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Duke Energy will post 6.33 earnings per share for the current year.

Duke Energy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th were given a dividend of $1.045 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 14th. This represents a $4.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.51%. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 73.20%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Duke Energy

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB raised its position in shares of Duke Energy by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 31,353 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $3,378,000 after acquiring an additional 93 shares during the last quarter. Pallas Capital Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Duke Energy by 2.8% during the fourth quarter. Pallas Capital Advisors LLC now owns 3,456 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $372,000 after acquiring an additional 95 shares during the last quarter. Intergy Private Wealth LLC increased its holdings in Duke Energy by 4.8% in the fourth quarter. Intergy Private Wealth LLC now owns 2,113 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $228,000 after purchasing an additional 96 shares in the last quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC increased its holdings in Duke Energy by 1.3% in the fourth quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 7,233 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $779,000 after purchasing an additional 96 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cravens & Co Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Duke Energy by 3.9% in the fourth quarter. Cravens & Co Advisors LLC now owns 2,624 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $283,000 after purchasing an additional 98 shares in the last quarter. 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.