JPMorgan Chase & Co. Issues Pessimistic Forecast for Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) Stock Price

Key Points

• JPMorgan cut Duke Energy’s price target from $139 to $136 and kept a neutral rating, implying about 9.64% upside from the current share price.
• Duke Energy’s stock was trading lower at $124.04, and the company currently carries a market cap of about $96.7 billion with a relatively low beta of 0.41.
• The utility recently reported strong first-quarter earnings, beating estimates on both EPS and revenue, while analysts overall still rate the stock a Moderate Buy with an average target price of $140.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK - Get Free Report) had its target price lowered by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $139.00 to $136.00 in a research note issued on Wednesday,MarketScreener reports. The brokerage currently has a "neutral" rating on the utilities provider's stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.'s target price indicates a potential upside of 9.64% from the stock's current price.

Other equities analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on Duke Energy from $141.00 to $142.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 11th. BMO Capital Markets decreased their price objective on Duke Energy from $139.00 to $138.00 in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Mizuho boosted their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $130.00 to $139.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. UBS Group lowered their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $137.00 to $135.00 in a research report on Monday. Finally, Capitol Sec Mgt lowered shares of Duke Energy from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, April 10th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $140.00.

Duke Energy Stock Performance

DUK stock traded down $1.03 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $124.04. 201,134 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,060,082. Duke Energy has a one year low of $111.22 and a one year high of $134.49. The firm has a market capitalization of $96.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.00 and a beta of 0.41. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $129.42 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $124.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.45, a current ratio of 0.66 and a quick ratio of 0.44.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The utilities provider reported $1.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.87 by $0.06. Duke Energy had a net margin of 15.49% and a return on equity of 9.73%. The company had revenue of $9.18 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $8.44 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.76 EPS. Duke Energy's quarterly revenue was up 11.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Duke Energy has set its FY 2026 guidance at 6.550-6.80 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Duke Energy will post 6.7 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Harry K. Sideris sold 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $124.37, for a total value of $2,487,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 96,102 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $11,952,205.74. This represents a 17.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, SVP Regis T. Repko sold 962 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $127.86, for a total transaction of $123,001.32. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 3,896 shares in the company, valued at approximately $498,142.56. The trade was a 19.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 31,262 shares of company stock worth $3,916,582 over the last three months. Insiders own 0.12% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Duke Energy

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of DUK. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in Duke Energy by 2.6% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 78,258,757 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $9,172,709,000 after purchasing an additional 1,957,592 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Duke Energy by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 19,292,633 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $2,266,675,000 after acquiring an additional 230,375 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 8,931,127 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,046,818,000 after buying an additional 58,375 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its stake in Duke Energy by 13.1% in the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 8,236,893 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $965,446,000 after acquiring an additional 954,907 shares during the period. Finally, Northern Trust Corp raised its holdings in Duke Energy by 0.4% during the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 7,758,700 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $960,139,000 after buying an additional 31,703 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.31% of the company's stock.

Key Stories Impacting Duke Energy

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

• Positive Sentiment: Duke Energy reported first-quarter results that topped expectations, with EPS of $1.93 versus $1.87 expected and revenue of $9.18 billion versus $8.44 billion expected, reinforcing confidence in the company’s earnings momentum. Duke Energy earnings and growth commentary
• Positive Sentiment: The company said it applied for U.S. Department of Energy loans that could fund grid upgrades and new capacity while potentially saving customers billions, a development that may support Duke’s capital plan and long-term regulated growth. Duke Energy DOE loan application
• Positive Sentiment: Evercore nudged its price target higher on DUK, signaling continued analyst confidence in the utility’s earnings outlook and valuation. Evercore price target update
• Neutral Sentiment: Jefferies trimmed its target slightly, and UBS also lowered its target, but both still imply upside from current levels, so these notes look more like valuation fine-tuning than a bearish thesis shift. Jefferies target reduction
• Negative Sentiment: CEO Harry K. Sideris sold 20,000 shares, and CEO Louis E. Renjel sold 3,500 shares in separate disclosed transactions, which can weigh on sentiment even if the sales are routine. Harry Sideris SEC filing Louis Renjel SEC filing

About Duke Energy

Duke Energy Corporation is a U.S.-based electric power holding company headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina. The company's core business is the generation, transmission and distribution of electricity to residential, commercial and industrial customers. Duke Energy operates a mix of regulated electric utilities and non-regulated energy businesses, providing essential energy infrastructure and services across multiple states.

Its operating activities include owning and operating generation assets across a portfolio that encompasses nuclear, natural gas, coal, hydroelectric and an expanding array of renewable resources, as well as battery storage and grid modernization projects.

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