Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) Cut to "Hold" at Jefferies Financial Group

Key Points

• Duke Energy has been downgraded from a "buy" rating to a "hold" by Jefferies Financial Group, with a price objective of $134.00, indicating a potential upside of 9.59%.
• Recent earnings reported $1.25 EPS, slightly missing analyst expectations of $1.29, while revenue of $7.51 billion exceeded forecasts.
• Institutional investor activity has increased, with 65.31% of the stock currently held by hedge funds and other institutional investors, indicating strong interest in the company.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK - Get Free Report) was downgraded by equities research analysts at Jefferies Financial Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a note issued to investors on Friday,Finviz reports. They presently have a $134.00 price objective on the utilities provider's stock. Jefferies Financial Group's price target points to a potential upside of 9.59% from the stock's current price.

A number of other analysts have also issued reports on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $132.00 price objective on Duke Energy in a research note on Tuesday, July 1st. Raymond James Financial started coverage on Duke Energy in a research note on Friday, June 13th. They issued a "market perform" rating on the stock. Scotiabank increased their target price on Duke Energy from $120.00 to $128.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 6th. BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on Duke Energy from $131.00 to $132.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 6th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Duke Energy from $127.00 to $131.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 21st. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Duke Energy currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $131.00.

Duke Energy Stock Performance

NYSE:DUK opened at $122.28 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.55, a quick ratio of 0.42 and a current ratio of 0.66. Duke Energy has a 52-week low of $105.20 and a 52-week high of $127.85. The firm has a market cap of $95.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.88, a PEG ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 0.39. The business's fifty day moving average is $122.20 and its 200 day moving average is $119.46.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 5th. The utilities provider reported $1.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.29 by ($0.04). Duke Energy had a net margin of 15.51% and a return on equity of 9.85%. The company had revenue of $7.51 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.07 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.18 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 4.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Duke Energy has set its FY 2025 guidance at 6.170-6.420 EPS. Research analysts predict that Duke Energy will post 6.33 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Duke Energy

In other news, EVP Thomas Preston Jr. Gillespie sold 6,700 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $124.26, for a total transaction of $832,542.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 46,422 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,768,397.72. This represents a 12.61% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Bonnie B. Titone sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $124.38, for a total transaction of $248,760.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 19,608 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,438,843.04. This represents a 9.26% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.14% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Duke Energy

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 1.5% during the second quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 75,716,783 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $8,934,580,000 after purchasing an additional 1,154,783 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Duke Energy by 1.7% in the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 18,684,447 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $2,205,070,000 after buying an additional 319,001 shares during the period. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in Duke Energy by 11,417.7% during the 2nd quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 17,668,789 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $2,084,917,000 after acquiring an additional 17,515,383 shares in the last quarter. GQG Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 17,880.0% during the 1st quarter. GQG Partners LLC now owns 10,249,508 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,250,133,000 after acquiring an additional 10,192,503 shares during the period. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada raised its position in shares of Duke Energy by 4.9% in the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 8,921,517 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,088,158,000 after acquiring an additional 418,014 shares in the last quarter. 65.31% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other 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.

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