Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) Cut to Sell at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a report released on Saturday,Wall Street Zen reports.

Several other equities research analysts also recently weighed in on the company. Barclays decreased their price objective on Duke Energy from $132.00 to $124.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $137.00 to $130.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, October 13th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $127.00 to $128.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 21st. Mizuho set a $136.00 price objective on shares of Duke Energy in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Duke Energy in a research note on Thursday, October 29th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $132.19.

Duke Energy Stock Performance

Shares of DUK stock opened at $128.26 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $120.00 and its two-hundred day moving average is $124.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.47, a quick ratio of 0.43 and a current ratio of 0.66. Duke Energy has a 1 year low of $112.40 and a 1 year high of $134.49. The firm has a market cap of $100.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.43, a PEG ratio of 3.02 and a beta of 0.33.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, November 5th. The utilities provider reported $1.99 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.86 by $0.13. Duke Energy had a return on equity of 9.78% and a net margin of 15.78%. The business had revenue of $9.10 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.91 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.81 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 6.6% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that Duke Energy will post 6.72 earnings per share for the current year.

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 13th will be issued a $1.0850 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 13th. This represents a $4.34 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.4%. Duke Energy’s payout ratio is presently 63.45%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Bonnie Titone sold 2,900 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $128.00, for a total transaction of $371,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 26,111 shares in the company, valued at $3,342,208. This represents a 10.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Duke Energy

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Duke Energy in the 2nd quarter worth $605,680,000. Janus Henderson Group PLC increased its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 5,254.4% during the first quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 2,735,816 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $358,227,000 after acquiring an additional 2,684,721 shares during the period. Swiss National Bank raised its holdings in Duke Energy by 7.1% during the first quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 2,282,341 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $298,850,000 after purchasing an additional 151,400 shares in the last quarter. National Pension Service raised its holdings in Duke Energy by 1.8% during the second quarter. National Pension Service now owns 2,124,004 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $268,856,000 after purchasing an additional 36,835 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its holdings in Duke Energy by 2.9% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,092,284 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $273,979,000 after purchasing an additional 58,967 shares in the last quarter. 65.31% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Key Headlines Impacting Duke Energy

Here are the key news stories impacting Duke Energy this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Wall Street analysts are described as cautiously optimistic about Duke Energy’s prospects, although the stock has lagged the S&P 500 over the past year. That outlook may support sentiment, but the article does not provide a specific forecast or rating change. Are Wall Street Analysts Predicting Duke Energy Stock Will Climb or Sink?
• Positive Sentiment: Duke Energy Foundation grants to local first-responder agencies offer community-relations benefits, though the story does not indicate a material financial impact. Indiana first-responder grants
• Neutral Sentiment: Davidson County leaders are set to vote on rezoning for a Duke Energy natural-gas facility along the Yadkin River. Approval could advance the project, but the vote is pending and the articles do not report an outcome or quantify its expected financial contribution. Davidson County vote on Duke Energy plant Davidson County rezoning vote
• Negative Sentiment: A news report says a customer’s costly appliance replacements followed a Duke Energy billing mix-up. The case could pose reputational or customer-service concerns, though no broader pattern or material financial exposure is established in the headline. Duke Energy billing mix-up report

About Duke Energy

Duke Energy is a U.S. energy company focused primarily on regulated electric utilities and natural gas distribution. Its businesses generate, transmit and distribute electricity, and provide natural gas service to residential, commercial and industrial customers.

The company serves electric customers in North Carolina, South Carolina, Florida, Indiana, Ohio and Kentucky. Its natural gas distribution operations serve customers in several states, including North Carolina, South Carolina, Ohio, Kentucky and Tennessee.

Duke Energy’s power generation portfolio includes nuclear, natural gas, coal, hydroelectric and renewable resources.