UBS Group Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) Stock

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) had its price objective upped by research analysts at UBS Group from $123.00 to $127.00 in a report released on Friday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a “neutral” rating on the utilities provider’s stock. UBS Group’s target price would suggest a potential upside of 6.72% from the stock’s current price.

DUK has been the subject of several other research reports. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on Duke Energy from $123.00 to $128.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on Duke Energy from $129.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Scotiabank raised their target price on Duke Energy from $113.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on Duke Energy from $123.00 to $128.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Duke Energy from $114.00 to $121.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $123.87.

Duke Energy Price Performance

Shares of DUK opened at $119.01 on Friday. Duke Energy has a 12-month low of $92.75 and a 12-month high of $121.47. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $114.16 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $113.67. The company has a quick ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.52. The stock has a market cap of $92.47 billion, a PE ratio of 20.84, a PEG ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.48.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The utilities provider reported $1.66 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.61 by $0.05. Duke Energy had a return on equity of 9.50% and a net margin of 14.90%. Analysts anticipate that Duke Energy will post 6.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Duke Energy

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of DUK. Groupama Asset Managment bought a new stake in Duke Energy during the third quarter worth $2,537,000. ExodusPoint Capital Management LP bought a new stake in Duke Energy during the fourth quarter worth $163,819,000. Zimmer Partners LP bought a new stake in Duke Energy during the third quarter worth $166,263,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its holdings in Duke Energy by 155.1% during the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 1,873,321 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $201,832,000 after acquiring an additional 1,138,979 shares during the period. Finally, Capital Wealth Planning LLC lifted its holdings in Duke Energy by 116.5% during the fourth quarter. Capital Wealth Planning LLC now owns 2,065,344 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $222,520,000 after acquiring an additional 1,111,581 shares during the period. 65.31% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.