Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) Sees Significant Drop in Short Interest

Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) was the recipient of a significant decline in short interest in the month of March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totalling 8,400,000 shares, a decline of 10.6% from the March 15th total of 9,400,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 3,060,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.7 days.

Duke Energy Stock Down 0.4 %

Shares of NYSE:DUK opened at $94.90 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $73.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.73, a PEG ratio of 2.53 and a beta of 0.46. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $94.09 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $93.14. Duke Energy has a 12-month low of $83.06 and a 12-month high of $100.39. The company has a current ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 0.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.50.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 8th. The utilities provider reported $1.51 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.53 by ($0.02). Duke Energy had a return on equity of 8.93% and a net margin of 9.78%. The business had revenue of $7.21 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.24 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.11 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts anticipate that Duke Energy will post 5.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Duke Energy

In other Duke Energy news, EVP Louis E. Renjel sold 3,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.57, for a total value of $277,710.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 14,213 shares in the company, valued at $1,315,697.41. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Duke Energy

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Duke Energy in the first quarter valued at about $25,000. Altshuler Shaham Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Duke Energy in the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Private Wealth Management Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Duke Energy in the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. O Dell Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Duke Energy in the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Finally, CKW Financial Group purchased a new stake in shares of Duke Energy in the third quarter worth about $25,000. 65.31% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently commented on DUK. BMO Capital Markets reduced their target price on Duke Energy from $101.00 to $100.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 12th. Royal Bank of Canada upgraded Duke Energy from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $101.00 to $113.00 in a research report on Wednesday, January 10th. Bank of America boosted their target price on Duke Energy from $96.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday. Evercore ISI upgraded Duke Energy from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $90.00 to $108.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 23rd. Finally, Mizuho upped their price objective on Duke Energy from $89.00 to $99.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, April 5th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $101.00.

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.