Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) Price Target Raised to $135.00 at Wells Fargo & Company

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) had its target price raised by Wells Fargo & Company from $115.00 to $135.00 in a report released on Wednesday morning,Benzinga reports. Wells Fargo & Company currently has an equal weight rating on the utilities provider’s stock.

Several other research firms have also issued reports on DUK. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $141.00 to $142.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 11th. Barclays cut their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $135.00 to $127.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 15th. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Duke Energy in a report on Monday, December 29th. Scotiabank increased their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $137.00 to $146.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 16th. Finally, UBS Group dropped their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $135.00 to $126.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, December 17th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $137.13.

Duke Energy Price Performance

Shares of NYSE DUK opened at $131.90 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $102.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.87, a PEG ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 0.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.54, a quick ratio of 0.33 and a current ratio of 0.55. Duke Energy has a fifty-two week low of $111.22 and a fifty-two week high of $132.66. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $121.99 and its 200 day simple moving average is $122.24.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last posted its earnings results on Monday, February 9th. The utilities provider reported $1.50 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.49 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $7.94 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.57 billion. Duke Energy had a return on equity of 9.66% and a net margin of 15.41%.During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.66 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Duke Energy will post 6.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 13th will be given a dividend of $1.065 per share. This represents a $4.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 13th. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 67.41%.

Insider Activity at Duke Energy

In other Duke Energy news, CEO Louis E. Renjel sold 6,800 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $127.67, for a total transaction of $868,156.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 22,007 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,809,633.69. This represents a 23.61% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, SVP Regis T. Repko sold 962 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $127.86, for a total value of $123,001.32. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 3,896 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $498,142.56. This represents a 19.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Company insiders own 0.14% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Duke Energy

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in DUK. SHP Wealth Management purchased a new position in shares of Duke Energy in the fourth quarter worth about $247,000. S Harris Financial Group LLC bought a new position in Duke Energy in the 4th quarter worth approximately $207,000. CFO Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Duke Energy in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $685,000. Clearwave Capital LLC bought a new stake in Duke Energy during the 4th quarter valued at $303,000. Finally, Oak Grove Capital LLC lifted its position in shares of Duke Energy by 4.4% during the fourth quarter. Oak Grove Capital LLC now owns 119,750 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $14,036,000 after acquiring an additional 5,000 shares in the last quarter. 65.31% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Duke Energy News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: Duke reports materially improved reliability — company and local press say outage durations are at multi‑decade lows after grid upgrades and hardening work, which reduces storm-related costs, supports regulatory goodwill and strengthens the utility’s reliability narrative. Article Title PR Newswire
• Positive Sentiment: Wells Fargo raised its price target on DUK from $115 to $135 (maintaining an equal‑weight rating), a sign that at least one major sell‑side firm sees upside vs. prior expectations and that near‑term estimates are being revised upward. TickerReport Benzinga
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts collectively rate DUK around a “Moderate Buy,” which supports demand for the stock and suggests consensus expectations remain constructive. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Operational/technology: Duke Energy Ohio & Kentucky are deploying AI to detect customer scams, which can reduce losses and regulatory complaints over time and improve customer trust. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Duke is conducting helicopter tree‑trimming in the Wabash Valley — a routine vegetation‑management activity that supports reliability but is operationally minor for valuation. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: DUK has been a trending stock on Zacks and related outlets — increased attention can lift volume and volatility but doesn’t by itself change fundamentals. Zacks
• Negative Sentiment: Short interest has risen sharply (reported up ~27.7%), which increases the potential for downward pressure from bearish positions and can raise volatility if shorts amplify. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Customer complaints about unexpected or high bills (local coverage of a $450 bill for a vacant unit and broader social media responses) present PR and regulatory risks that could prompt investigations or require customer remediation. Fox59 MSN

Duke Energy Company Profile

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.