Advertisement
U.S. markets close in 2 hours 15 minutes
  • S&P 500

    5,251.30
    +2.81 (+0.05%)
     
  • Dow 30

    39,768.34
    +8.26 (+0.02%)
     
  • Nasdaq

    16,378.50
    -21.02 (-0.13%)
     
  • Russell 2000

    2,124.85
    +10.50 (+0.50%)
     
  • Crude Oil

    82.88
    +1.53 (+1.88%)
     
  • Gold

    2,239.60
    +26.90 (+1.22%)
     
  • Silver

    24.93
    +0.18 (+0.74%)
     
  • EUR/USD

    1.0799
    -0.0030 (-0.28%)
     
  • 10-Yr Bond

    4.2060
    +0.0100 (+0.24%)
     
  • GBP/USD

    1.2625
    -0.0013 (-0.10%)
     
  • USD/JPY

    151.3880
    +0.1420 (+0.09%)
     
  • Bitcoin USD

    70,676.59
    +1,592.67 (+2.31%)
     
  • CMC Crypto 200

    885.54
    0.00 (0.00%)
     
  • FTSE 100

    7,952.62
    +20.64 (+0.26%)
     
  • Nikkei 225

    40,168.07
    -594.66 (-1.46%)
     

Duke Energy (DUK) to Upgrade North Carolina Electric System

Duke Energy Corporation DUK announced its plans of spending about $13 billion to “modernize” North Carolina’s electric system over the next 10 years. Duke Energy said that this project, Power/Forward Carolinas, will result in lower bills and fewer electricity outages. This investment will be over and above the $1 billion that the company spends annually on grid maintenance and upgrades.

 

The proposed project will defend the electric system against storms and outages by moving certain power lines underground, safeguard it against cyber attacks and physical threats and will help expand renewable energy. This initiative will also be customer centric as it will include bill-lowering tools designed to help them reduce energy costs. 

 

Clean Energy for Smart Future

 

In Jan 2017, Duke Energy announced that it will build its next universal solar plant in Suwannee County with the aim of providing cleaner and smarter energy solutions to customers in Florida, with a generation capacity of 8.8 megawatts (MW) of carbon-free energy. (Read More: Duke Energy to Build Next Solar Plant in Suwannee County)

 

In pursuit of more green energy, the company has invested more than $4 billion since 2007. Duke Energy Renewables owns and operates about 2,900 megawatts (MW) of renewable energy out of which 2,300 MW is wind and 600 MW is solar.

 

Major electricity supply companies have been focusing on renewable sources of energy in recent times. NextEra Energy, Inc.’s NEE affiliate, Florida Power & Light Company, wants to add around 2,100 MWs of new solar capacity across the state of Florida in the next seven years.

 

In Mar 2017, Xcel Energy XEL announced its plans of making the largest multi-state investment in wind capacity in the country. The company expects the proposed plan to increase the volume of wind energy in Xcel's energy mix by 2021, with wind fueling nearly 35% of its total energy mix.

 

Price Movement

 

In the last one year, shares of Duke Energy outperformed the Zacks categorized Utility- Electric Power industry. The company’s shares returned 4.2%, compared with the industry’s decline of 0.04%.

 

 

The new investment coupled with modernized approach and strategic acquisitions are expected to boost the performance of the company in the coming days.

 

Zacks Rank and Stock to Consider

 

Duke Energy currently has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). A better-ranked stock in the same space is Entergy Corporation ETR, which sports a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy). 

 

Entergy Corporation’s Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2017 earnings moved up by approximately 10% to $4.96 from $4.51 per share in the last 60 days. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

 

The Best & Worst of Zacks

 

Today you are invited to download the full, up-to-the-minute list of 220 Zacks Rank #1 ""Strong Buys"" free of charge. From 1988 through 2015 this list has averaged a stellar gain of +25% per year. Plus, you may download 220 Zacks Rank #5 ""Strong Sells."" Even though this list holds many stocks that seem to be solid, it has historically performed 6X worse than the market.  See these critical buys and sells free >>


Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report
 
Xcel Energy Inc. (XEL): Free Stock Analysis Report
 
NextEra Energy, Inc. (NEE): Free Stock Analysis Report
 
Entergy Corporation (ETR): Free Stock Analysis Report
 
Duke Energy Corporation (DUK): Free Stock Analysis Report
 
To read this article on Zacks.com click here.
 
Zacks Investment Research

Advertisement