Morgan Stanley Cuts Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) Price Target to $127.00

Key Points

• Morgan Stanley lowered Duke Energy’s price target from $133 to $127 while maintaining an “equal weight” rating, implying roughly 8% upside from the prior close.
• Analyst sentiment remains broadly positive: Duke Energy has a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $137.56, with 10 Buy ratings and 8 Holds.
• Duke Energy reported quarterly EPS of $1.43, beating expectations of $1.30, while revenue rose 1.1% year over year to $7.59 billion; institutional investors own 65.31% of the stock.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK - Get Free Report) had its price objective dropped by analysts at Morgan Stanley from $133.00 to $127.00 in a report released on Friday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an "equal weight" rating on the utilities provider's stock. Morgan Stanley's price target would suggest a potential upside of 8.07% from the company's previous close.

Other analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price objective on Duke Energy from $134.00 to $132.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. Barclays cut their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $140.00 to $132.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. BTIG Research restated a "buy" rating on shares of Duke Energy in a research report on Thursday, July 23rd. Mizuho set a $136.00 price target on shares of Duke Energy in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Duke Energy in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $137.56.

Duke Energy Price Performance

DUK traded down $1.03 during trading on Friday, hitting $117.51. 1,274,675 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,959,476. The company has a current ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 0.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.47. The company has a market cap of $91.62 billion, a PE ratio of 17.61, a P/E/G ratio of 2.75 and a beta of 0.37. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $123.32 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $125.90. Duke Energy has a 1 year low of $113.89 and a 1 year high of $134.49.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 3rd. The utilities provider reported $1.43 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.30 by $0.13. Duke Energy had a net margin of 15.78% and a return on equity of 9.78%. The business had revenue of $7.59 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.66 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.25 EPS. The business's revenue was up 1.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Duke Energy will post 6.72 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in DUK. Basso Capital Management L.P. purchased a new position in Duke Energy in the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. Evolution Wealth Management Inc. increased its holdings in Duke Energy by 1,111.1% during the 4th quarter. Evolution Wealth Management Inc. now owns 218 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the period. Cornerstone Financial Management LLC acquired a new stake in Duke Energy in the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Kingdom Financial Group LLC. purchased a new position in shares of Duke Energy in the 4th quarter valued at about $33,000. Finally, IAG Wealth Partners LLC grew its position in shares of Duke Energy by 154.6% during the first quarter. IAG Wealth Partners LLC now owns 275 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 167 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.31% of the company's stock.

About Duke Energy

Duke Energy Corporation is an electric and natural gas utility holding company headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina. The company generates, transmits, distributes and sells electricity, with a generation portfolio that includes natural gas, nuclear, coal, hydroelectric and renewable energy resources. It also operates natural gas distribution businesses and provides related energy services.

Duke Energy's regulated electric utilities serve residential, commercial and industrial customers across the Carolinas, Florida, Indiana, Ohio and Kentucky.

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