Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) Price Target Cut to $118.00 by Analysts at Morgan Stanley

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) had its price target reduced by Morgan Stanley from $122.00 to $118.00 in a report published on Friday,Benzinga reports. Morgan Stanley currently has an equal weight rating on the utilities provider’s stock.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. KeyCorp cut shares of Duke Energy from an “overweight” rating to a “sector weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. Bank of America boosted their price target on Duke Energy from $116.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. Evercore ISI lifted their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $108.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $110.00 to $122.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. Finally, Scotiabank boosted their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $104.00 to $113.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 20th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $121.69.

Duke Energy Price Performance

Shares of NYSE DUK opened at $114.70 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.55, a current ratio of 0.70 and a quick ratio of 0.45. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $115.14 and its 200-day simple moving average is $109.69. Duke Energy has a 12 month low of $89.92 and a 12 month high of $121.25. The stock has a market capitalization of $88.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.08, a PEG ratio of 3.03 and a beta of 0.47.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 7th. The utilities provider reported $1.62 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.73 by ($0.11). Duke Energy had a net margin of 14.31% and a return on equity of 9.34%. The firm had revenue of $8.16 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.06 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.94 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Duke Energy will post 5.97 EPS for the current year.

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be given a $1.045 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 15th. This represents a $4.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.64%. Duke Energy’s payout ratio is currently 76.84%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Duke Energy

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in DUK. PBMares Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Duke Energy by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. PBMares Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,886 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $563,000 after purchasing an additional 86 shares during the period. Pinnacle West Asset Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Duke Energy by 2.1% during the second quarter. Pinnacle West Asset Management Inc. now owns 4,425 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $444,000 after buying an additional 90 shares during the period. Castleview Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 4.9% in the third quarter. Castleview Partners LLC now owns 1,944 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $224,000 after buying an additional 90 shares in the last quarter. Kanawha Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 1.4% in the 3rd quarter. Kanawha Capital Management LLC now owns 6,591 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $760,000 after buying an additional 92 shares during the period. Finally, Baron Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in Duke Energy by 3.5% during the 3rd quarter. Baron Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,730 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $315,000 after acquiring an additional 92 shares in the last quarter. 65.31% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Duke Energy

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.