Back to top

Image: Bigstock

Duke Energy (DUK) Stock Sinks As Market Gains: What You Should Know

Read MoreHide Full Article

Duke Energy (DUK - Free Report) closed the latest trading day at $95.91, indicating a -0.22% change from the previous session's end. The stock fell short of the S&P 500, which registered a gain of 1.11% for the day. Elsewhere, the Dow gained 0.8%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq added 1.24%.

Prior to today's trading, shares of the electric utility had gained 1.74% over the past month. This has lagged the Utilities sector's gain of 3.43% and outpaced the S&P 500's gain of 0.48% in that time.

Market participants will be closely following the financial results of Duke Energy in its upcoming release. On that day, Duke Energy is projected to report earnings of $1.39 per share, which would represent year-over-year growth of 15.83%. In the meantime, our current consensus estimate forecasts the revenue to be $7.88 billion, indicating an 8.29% growth compared to the corresponding quarter of the prior year.

For the full year, the Zacks Consensus Estimates are projecting earnings of $5.99 per share and revenue of $30.36 billion, which would represent changes of +7.73% and +4.48%, respectively, from the prior year.

Any recent changes to analyst estimates for Duke Energy should also be noted by investors. Recent revisions tend to reflect the latest near-term business trends. As such, positive estimate revisions reflect analyst optimism about the company's business and profitability.

Our research reveals that these estimate alterations are directly linked with the stock price performance in the near future. Investors can capitalize on this by using the Zacks Rank. This model considers these estimate changes and provides a simple, actionable rating system.

The Zacks Rank system ranges from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell). It has a remarkable, outside-audited track record of success, with #1 stocks delivering an average annual return of +25% since 1988. Over the past month, the Zacks Consensus EPS estimate has moved 0.03% lower. Duke Energy presently features a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold).

Digging into valuation, Duke Energy currently has a Forward P/E ratio of 16.06. This indicates a premium in contrast to its industry's Forward P/E of 15.14.

One should further note that DUK currently holds a PEG ratio of 2.56. This popular metric is similar to the widely-known P/E ratio, with the difference being that the PEG ratio also takes into account the company's expected earnings growth rate. As of the close of trade yesterday, the Utility - Electric Power industry held an average PEG ratio of 2.56.

The Utility - Electric Power industry is part of the Utilities sector. This group has a Zacks Industry Rank of 144, putting it in the bottom 43% of all 250+ industries.

The Zacks Industry Rank evaluates the power of our distinct industry groups by determining the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks forming the groups. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.

Make sure to utilize Zacks.com to follow all of these stock-moving metrics, and more, in the coming trading sessions.


See More Zacks Research for These Tickers


Normally $25 each - click below to receive one report FREE:


Duke Energy Corporation (DUK) - free report >>

Published in