Jefferies Financial Group Cuts Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) Price Target to $126.00

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) had its price objective decreased by Jefferies Financial Group from $138.00 to $126.00 in a report issued on Monday morning,MarketScreener reports. Jefferies Financial Group currently has a hold rating on the utilities provider’s stock.

Other research analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. Evercore ISI assumed coverage on Duke Energy in a report on Monday, October 6th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $143.00 target price on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on Duke Energy from $138.00 to $141.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 13th. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of Duke Energy to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 28th. Morgan Stanley reissued an “underperform” rating on shares of Duke Energy in a report on Thursday, November 20th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $131.00 to $136.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 14th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $137.69.

Duke Energy Trading Down 1.1%

DUK opened at $114.00 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $88.65 billion, a PE ratio of 17.92, a P/E/G ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 0.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.54, a current ratio of 0.63 and a quick ratio of 0.40. Duke Energy has a 12-month low of $105.20 and a 12-month high of $130.03. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $123.68 and its 200 day moving average price is $121.21.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, November 6th. The utilities provider reported $1.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.75 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $8.54 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.51 billion. Duke Energy had a net margin of 15.76% and a return on equity of 9.98%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.62 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that Duke Energy will post 6.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 16th. Investors of record on Friday, November 14th will be given a $1.065 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 14th. This represents a $4.26 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.7%. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 66.98%.

Insider Transactions at Duke Energy

In other Duke Energy news, EVP Robert Alexander Glenn sold 8,200 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $123.80, for a total transaction of $1,015,160.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 11,367 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,407,234.60. The trade was a 41.91% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.14% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Duke Energy

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in DUK. Simon Quick Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Duke Energy by 42.2% in the 2nd quarter. Simon Quick Advisors LLC now owns 7,444 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $878,000 after acquiring an additional 2,210 shares during the last quarter. Westbourne Investments Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Duke Energy in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $282,000. Resolution Capital Ltd lifted its stake in Duke Energy by 7.6% during the first quarter. Resolution Capital Ltd now owns 59,995 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $7,318,000 after purchasing an additional 4,255 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. boosted its holdings in Duke Energy by 88.1% during the first quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. now owns 4,861,309 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $592,934,000 after buying an additional 2,276,948 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dogwood Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Duke Energy by 52.8% in the second quarter. Dogwood Wealth Management LLC now owns 9,125 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,061,000 after buying an additional 3,152 shares during the last quarter. 65.31% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.