Scotiabank upgrades Duke Energy on strong fundamental trends

Scotiabank upgraded Duke Energy (DUK) to Outperform from Sector Perform with a price target of $137, up from $128. While “boring,” the firm believes that Duke has impressive momentum thanks to an accelerating demand outlook, including unique exposure to both data centers and manufacturers, adding that it is “drawn to the company’s strong fundamental trends and quiet regulatory calendar.” Combined with a peer-average valuation, this should make Duke appealing to “many investors looking for a straightforward large cap utility stock,” the analyst contends.