Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) Stock Rating Lowered by Wall Street Zen

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) was downgraded by research analysts at Wall Street Zen from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report issued on Saturday, Wall Street Zen reports.

Several other research analysts have also weighed in on the company. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on Duke Energy from $133.00 to $127.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday. BTIG Research reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Duke Energy in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. BMO Capital Markets lowered their target price on Duke Energy from $134.00 to $132.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Duke Energy in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Finally, Barclays cut their price target on Duke Energy from $140.00 to $132.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $137.56.

Duke Energy Stock Down 0.1%

Shares of NYSE DUK opened at $117.44 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $91.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.74 and a beta of 0.37. Duke Energy has a 52-week low of $113.89 and a 52-week high of $134.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.47, a quick ratio of 0.43 and a current ratio of 0.66. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $123.16 and its 200-day moving average price is $125.80.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 3rd. The utilities provider reported $1.43 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.30 by $0.13. Duke Energy had a net margin of 15.78% and a return on equity of 9.78%. The company had revenue of $7.59 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.66 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.25 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 1.1% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts forecast that Duke Energy will post 6.72 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Duke Energy

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Basso Capital Management L.P. bought a new position in shares of Duke Energy in the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. Evolution Wealth Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Duke Energy by 1,111.1% during the fourth quarter. Evolution Wealth Management Inc. now owns 218 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Cornerstone Financial Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Duke Energy in the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Kingdom Financial Group LLC. bought a new position in Duke Energy in the 4th quarter valued at about $33,000. Finally, IAG Wealth Partners LLC boosted its stake in Duke Energy by 154.6% during the 1st quarter. IAG Wealth Partners LLC now owns 275 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 167 shares during the last quarter. 65.31% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Duke Energy News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: Strong electricity demand highlights system growth: Unusually hot September weather has driven elevated power usage across North and South Carolina. Duke asked customers to voluntarily reduce consumption during the peak 2–8 p.m. period, underscoring demand for its electricity and the importance of grid reliability. Duke Energy asks Carolinas customers to reduce electricity use during today’s peak-demand period
• Positive Sentiment: Storm response recognized: The Edison Electric Institute honored Duke for restoring service to nearly 200,000 customers after Winter Storm Fern, supporting the company’s reputation for operational execution and customer service. EEI recognizes Duke Energy for outstanding response to Winter Storm Fern
• Neutral Sentiment: Outage recovery continues: Most of Greensboro’s power had been restored by Friday evening after outages, limiting the potential for a prolonged customer-impact issue but highlighting ongoing reliability and weather-related operating risks. The majority of Greensboro’s power has been restored
• Negative Sentiment: Morgan Stanley lowered its price target: The firm cut its target for Duke from $133 to $127 and maintained an “equal weight” rating. While the revised target still implies upside, the reduction signals more limited near-term appreciation potential and was likely the clearest market-specific catalyst.
• Negative Sentiment: North Carolina rejected a $584 million gas-turbine proposal: State regulators denied Duke’s plan for generation near an Amazon data center. The decision could delay capacity additions, weaken expected data-center growth opportunities, and complicate recovery of investment costs from customers. NC regulators deny Duke Energy’s gas turbine proposal
• Negative Sentiment: Legal and regulatory liabilities remain concerns: Duke dropped its challenge to a workplace-safety fine tied to a lineman’s electrocution death, while a separate lawsuit alleges negligence in a power-line death. Potential penalties, litigation costs, and reputational damage are modest but unfavorable overhangs.

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.