Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) Stock Price Expected to Rise, Wells Fargo & Company Analyst Says

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK - Get Free Report) had its price objective hoisted by stock analysts at Wells Fargo & Company from $127.00 to $138.00 in a research report issued on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an "overweight" rating on the utilities provider's stock. Wells Fargo & Company's target price indicates a potential upside of 12.21% from the stock's current price.

Several other equities analysts also recently weighed in on the stock. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $123.00 to $128.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, March 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $114.00 to $121.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. BMO Capital Markets dropped their target price on Duke Energy from $128.00 to $123.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 10th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on Duke Energy from $129.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price objective on Duke Energy from $123.00 to $127.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, March 21st. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Duke Energy presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $124.93.

Duke Energy Price Performance

Duke Energy stock opened at $122.99 on Wednesday. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $119.27 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $114.58. Duke Energy has a 52-week low of $99.21 and a 52-week high of $125.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.52, a quick ratio of 0.44 and a current ratio of 0.67. The stock has a market capitalization of $95.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.55, a PEG ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.39.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 6th. The utilities provider reported $1.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.59 by $0.17. The company had revenue of $8.25 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.70 billion. Duke Energy had a return on equity of 9.50% and a net margin of 14.90%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 7.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.44 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Duke Energy will post 6.33 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Duke Energy

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of DUK. Bcwm LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Duke Energy during the 4th quarter valued at $9,815,000. Bailard Inc. increased its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 10.9% during the fourth quarter. Bailard Inc. now owns 31,921 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $3,439,000 after buying an additional 3,139 shares during the period. KMG Fiduciary Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Duke Energy by 5.5% in the 4th quarter. KMG Fiduciary Partners LLC now owns 52,097 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $5,613,000 after purchasing an additional 2,705 shares during the period. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 25.7% during the 4th quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 35,755 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $3,852,000 after acquiring an additional 7,319 shares during the period. Finally, First Business Financial Services Inc. purchased a new position in Duke Energy during the fourth quarter valued at $384,000. Institutional investors own 65.31% of the company's stock.

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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