CluenexDuke Energy DUK
Duke Energy scores weak on business quality (4.4 of 10). Here is why, in plain words, and what our sealed record shows.
Why it matters
- What Duke Energy does
Duke Energy generates electricity and distributes gas to millions of customers across the US Southeast and Midwest. Regulated utilities pay steady returns based on approved state rates.
- What it does best
Duke dominates regulated electric and gas delivery across several states, backed by an operating margin of 26.6% that ranks in the 79th sector percentile. State-granted monopoly status creates insurmountable barriers to entry for potential rivals.
- The main risk
Heavy capital expenditure outlays drive free cash flow down to negative $4.3B. If regulatory commissions delay rate relief or trim allowed returns on equity, debt servicing costs will squeeze earnings.
Quality, check by check
Scored against its own industry, from company filings.
Operating margin reaches 26.6% while free cash flow margin is weighed down by heavy capital spending of $15.8B. The business absorbs massive infrastructure costs to maintain its regulated asset base.
Protected by state utility monopolies that lock in captive residential and commercial customers. Operating margin sits in the 79th sector percentile, reflecting stable pricing power granted by regulators.
Revenue growth registers at 6.2%, sitting in the 32nd percentile of its sector. Expansion relies almost entirely on approved rate base increases rather than organic volume surges.
Total debt sits at $89.8B against just $245M in cash, resulting in a thin interest coverage ratio of 2.3x. Free cash flow is deeply negative at -$4.3B due to heavy capital outlays, leaving the balance sheet soft.
Insiders
Executives and directors, from SEC Form 4 filings we read ourselves. Open market trades only; grants, option exercises and pre-planned sales left out.
No open market buys or unplanned sales by executives or directors.
Our sealed record on DUK
Verdicts appear here 30 days after we publish them; members see today's. Each one is in the nightly ledger, fingerprinted the night it was made.
The first sealed verdicts appear here on Oct 11, 2026.
Questions
Duke Energy scores weak on the Cluenex quality check (4.4 of 10), measured against its own industry. Profitability is fair, moat fair, growth slow and financial health fair.
In the last 90 days of SEC Form 4 filings: No open market buys or unplanned sales by executives or directors.
Nov 5, 2026, before the open.
See DUK today
- Today's verdict on DUK, and why
- Fair value with cautious, base and optimistic cases
- The exact price that would change the verdict
- Which stocks each signal names, the night it fires
Cite this page: Cluenex, “Duke Energy (DUK)”, https://cluenex.com/stocks/duk/, data as of Oct 10, 2026.