Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK) Receives Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

11 Feb 2026, 09:14 by Sarita Garza · The Markets Daily

Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK – Get Free Report) has been given an average rating of “Moderate Buy” by the eighteen brokerages that are covering the company, Marketbeat reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12 month target price among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $133.8750.

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on DUK shares. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Duke Energy in a research report on Monday, December 29th. UBS Group decreased 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 note on Wednesday, December 17th. TD Cowen initiated coverage on Duke Energy in a report on Thursday, October 16th. They set a “buy” rating and a $143.00 target price on the stock. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “underperform” rating and issued a $130.00 price target on shares of Duke Energy in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on Duke Energy from $136.00 to $126.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, December 11th.

Read Our Latest Research Report on DUK

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Duke Energy news, EVP Robert Alexander Glenn sold 8,200 shares of Duke Energy 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 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 ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.14% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in DUK. Pflug Koory LLC raised its holdings in Duke Energy by 3.0% in the 3rd quarter. Pflug Koory LLC now owns 2,694 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $333,000 after buying an additional 79 shares during the period. WealthShield Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 0.3% in the 2nd quarter. WealthShield Partners LLC now owns 25,453 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $3,003,000 after acquiring an additional 80 shares during the period. Cypress Wealth Services LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 1.7% in the 3rd quarter. Cypress Wealth Services LLC now owns 5,048 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $625,000 after acquiring an additional 82 shares during the last quarter. EWA LLC boosted its position in shares of Duke Energy by 3.9% during the 3rd quarter. EWA LLC now owns 2,203 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $273,000 after purchasing an additional 82 shares during the period. Finally, Mill Creek Capital Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Duke Energy by 4.6% in the 3rd quarter. Mill Creek Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,854 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $229,000 after purchasing an additional 82 shares during the last quarter. 65.31% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Duke Energy Price Performance

NYSE:DUK opened at $123.75 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $118.14 and a two-hundred day moving average of $121.67. Duke Energy has a 12 month low of $110.51 and a 12 month high of $130.03. The firm has a market cap of $96.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 0.51. The company has a current ratio of 0.63, a quick ratio of 0.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.54.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK – Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 10th. The utilities provider reported $1.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.49 by $0.01. Duke Energy had a return on equity of 9.98% and a net margin of 15.76%.The firm had revenue of $7.94 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.57 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.66 earnings per share. Duke Energy has set its FY 2026 guidance at 6.550-6.800 EPS. On average, analysts expect that Duke Energy will post 6.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 16th. Investors of record on Friday, February 13th will be issued a $1.065 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 13th. This represents a $4.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.4%. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 66.98%.

More Duke Energy News

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

Positive Sentiment: Management raised and extended its long‑term outlook — Duke expanded its five‑year capital plan to $103 billion (up about $16B) and reiterated a 5%–7% EPS growth target through 2030, signaling sustained investment-led earnings growth that underpins future rate base and earnings. Duke Energy projects 5%–7% EPS growth through 2030 while expanding $103B capital plan
Positive Sentiment: Data‑center demand is a material growth driver — Duke signed ~1.5 GW of new data‑center deals in Q4, lifting the pipeline to ~4.5 GW, providing contracted or near‑contracted load that supports revenue visibility and justifies grid investments. Duke Energy signed 1.5 GW of new data center deals in Q4, lifting total pipeline to 4.5 GW
Positive Sentiment: Q4 revenue beat and FY26 guidance roughly inline — revenue came in at $7.94B (above estimates) and management set FY2026 EPS guidance of $6.55–$6.80, supporting the view that demand (including AI/data center loads) is lifting top line and enabling durable cash flow. Duke Energy Q4 results and call materials
Neutral Sentiment: Recovery of storm costs improves cash flow — the company reported recovering ~$3B in storm costs, which reduces regulatory lag on cost recovery but is largely one‑time in nature. Duke Energy recovers $3 billion in storm costs, signs new data center deals
Neutral Sentiment: Operational reliability wins — smart, self‑healing grid tech avoided many extended outages and peak demand hit records, highlighting investment payoff but also signaling the need for continued capex. Smart, self-healing tech avoided extended outages
Negative Sentiment: Local regulatory/competitive risk — St. Petersburg has begun studying a municipal utility option as its contract with Duke nears expiration; if pursued, this could reduce customer base and future load in that jurisdiction. St. Petersburg to study municipal electric utility as Duke Energy contract nears expiration
Negative Sentiment: Near‑term margin pressure and mixed earnings reads — some outlets note Q4 EPS was down year‑over‑year and narrowly missed or only marginally beat certain estimates, reflecting higher costs that could compress near‑term margins despite revenue growth. Duke Energy Q4 earnings lag estimates, revenues rise y/y

Duke Energy Company Profile

(Get Free Report)

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.