Duke Energy (DUK) to Post Q2 Earnings: What's in Store?

Duke Energy Corporation DUK is scheduled to release its second-quarter 2024 results on Aug 6 before market open. The company delivered an earnings surprise of 3.60% in the last reported quarter.However, Duke Energy holds a negative four-quarter average earnings surprise of 1.11%.  Let’s discuss the factors that are likely to be reflected in the upcoming quarterly results.Factors at PlayIn the second quarter, the majority of DUK’s service territories experienced warmer-than-normal temperature patterns. Such above-average weather is likely to have boosted electricity demand from DUK’s customers for cooling purposes this spring, which must have bolstered its overall top-line performance.Duke Energy Corporation Price and EPS Surprise Duke Energy Corporation price-eps-surprise | Duke Energy Corporation QuoteAdverse weather events, including a few tornadoes and a strong hurricane, might have resulted in an outage for some of Duke Energy’s customers during the second quarter. This might have some negative impact on its revenues.Nevertheless, strong customer growth and rate-based growth witnessed in the prior quarters are likely to have contributed to Duke Energy’s second-quarter revenues.From the cost perspective, operation and maintenance costs to restore damages caused by the adverse weather conditions mentioned above might have adversely impacted DUK’s second-quarter earnings. Higher interest expenses are likely to have also weighed on the bottom line.However, favorable returns from prior investments in grid enhancement, along with solid top-line growth expectations, are projected to have benefited DUK’s overall bottom-line performance in the second quarter.Q2 ExpectationsThe Zacks Consensus Estimate for DUK’s second-quarter sales stands at $6.78 billion, which suggests an increase of 3.1% from the year-ago reported number.The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Duke Energy’s second-quarter earnings is pegged at $1.01 per share, which implies a rise of 11% from the second-quarter 2023 reported figure.What the Zacks Model UnveilsOur proven model does not conclusively predict an earnings beat for DUK this time. The combination of a positive Earnings ESP and a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), 2 (Buy) or 3 (Hold) increases the odds of an earnings beat, which is not the case here, as you will see below.Earnings ESP: DUK has an Earnings ESP of +0.65%. You can uncover the best stocks to buy or sell before they’re reported with our Earnings ESP Filter.Zacks Rank: Currently, Duke Energy carries a Zacks Rank #4 (Sell).A Stock to ConsiderBelow, we have mentioned the following player from the same industry that has the right combination of elements to beat on earnings in the upcoming release.Algonquin Power & Utilities AQN is slated to report its second-quarter 2024 results on Aug 9 before market open. It has an Earnings ESP of +9.09% and a Zacks Rank of 3 at present. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.The Zacks Consensus Estimate for AQN’s second-quarter earnings stands at 8 cents per share. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Entergy’s second-quarter sales is pegged at $625 million.Recent Utility ReleasesEdison International EIX reported second-quarter 2024 adjusted earnings of $1.23 per share, which increased 21.8% from $1.01 in the year-ago quarter. The Zacks Consensus Estimate was pegged at $1.05.Edison International's second-quarter operating revenues totaled $4.34 billion, which beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $4.03 billion by 7.5%. The top line also increased 9.4% from the year-ago quarter’s figure of $3.96 billion.PG&E Corporation PCG reported a second-quarter 2024 adjusted EPS of 31 cents, which surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 30 cents by 3.3%. The bottom line also improved 34.8% from the year-ago quarter’s reported figure.PCG reported total second-quarter revenues of $5.99 billion, up 13.2% from $5.29 billion registered in the year-ago period. Operating revenues also surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $5.83 billion by 2.7%.Stay on top of upcoming earnings announcements with the Zacks Earnings Calendar.5 Stocks Set to DoubleEach was handpicked by a Zacks expert as the #1 favorite stock to gain +100% or more in 2024. While not all picks can be winners, previous recommendations have soared +143.0%, +175.9%, +498.3% and +673.0%.Most of the stocks in this report are flying under Wall Street radar, which provides a great opportunity to get in on the ground floor.Today, See These 5 Potential Home Runs >>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 Edison International (EIX): Free Stock Analysis Report Pacific Gas & Electric Co. (PCG): Free Stock Analysis Report Duke Energy Corporation (DUK): Free Stock Analysis Report Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp. (AQN): Free Stock Analysis ReportTo read this article on Zacks.com click here.Zacks Investment ResearchWeiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Zacks Weiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Zacks