DUK vs ED: Which Is the Better Buy in 2026?

Same yardstick, side by side (as of August 2026). Valuation lined up like this is most meaningful for two names in the same corner of the market, which these are. Figures are approximate; verify before investing.

The metrics above tell you which is the marginally better business. The bigger risk for most people is not picking the slightly worse stock, it is over-concentrating. DUK and ED share themes, so owning both, or adding either to what you already hold, can quietly push a large share of your portfolio into one bet.

This is the part a generic comparison page cannot answer, because it depends on what you own. Connect your brokerage and Walnut shows your real, combined DUK and ED exposure, flags overlap with your existing positions, and tells you if adding one would tip you past a concentration you are comfortable with, read-only by default, with your login staying at your broker. Walnut is not an investment adviser.

Duke Energy is a holding company for a group of regulated electric and gas utilities serving roughly eight and a half million electric customers across six states, including the Carolinas, Florida, Indiana, Ohio, Kentucky, and Tennessee, plus natural gas distribution to over a million customers. As a regulated utility, Duke earns an authorized return on the capital it invests in power plants, poles, wires, and pipes, so its profit grows largely as it grows its regulated asset base, or rate base, subject to approval from state utility commissions. This regulated model produces relatively stable, predictable cash flows that fund a long-running dividend, which is the core of the income case for the stock.

Full DUK guide

Consolidated Edison, Inc. is a holding company whose main subsidiary, Consolidated Edison Company of New York, delivers regulated electricity, natural gas, and steam to New York City and Westchester County. A second utility, Orange and Rockland, serves nearby areas, and the company also holds FERC-regulated electric transmission investments. Because it operates as a regulated monopoly in its service territory, Con Edison does not compete for customers: instead, state and federal regulators set the rates it can charge and the return it can earn on the capital it invests, which makes its revenue and earnings unusually predictable compared with most companies.

Full ED guide

Both fit overlapping themes, but they are not interchangeable. The useful comparison is which set of drivers and risks you want exposure to.

• DUK drivers: Rate-base growth from a $103B capital plan; Data-center and large-load demand.
• ED drivers: Large approved rate-base investment plan; Electrification and clean-energy transition in New York.

A faster-growing, richer-valued name usually swings harder, so it suits a longer horizon and a higher tolerance for volatility; a steadier, more cash-generative business suits a more conservative or income-minded investor. The honest test is which set of risks you could hold through a drawdown: Duke is highly capital-intensive and carries substantial debt to fund its build-out, which makes it sensitive to interest rates: higher rates raise its borrowing costs and tend to compress the valuations investors assign to regulated utilities, while also making bond yields more competitive with its dividend. For ED, the biggest risks are regulatory and interest-rate driven.

Pick DUK if you believe its drivers more; ED if you believe its. Many investors hold both, but since they share themes, that is a concentrated bet, not diversification. Decide deliberately and check overlap. For the full detail, see the DUK and ED guides.

DUK. As of late June 2026, DUK traded near the high-$120s per share with a market cap around ~$100 billion. The trailing P/E of roughly ~19x to ~20x is broadly in line with large regulated-utility peers, reflecting steady but moderate earnings growth rather than the higher multiples of faster-growing sectors. Revenue for full-year 2025 was about ~$31.8 billion, and Q1 2026 adjusted EPS was ~$1.93, up from ~$1.76 a year earlier. Figures are approximate, drawn from the Q1 2026 release and public market data, and move with the share price.

ED. Figures are approximate and tied to the asOf date; verify live numbers before acting. Utilities like Con Edison are usually valued on dividend yield and price-to-earnings relative to peers rather than on rapid growth, so the key questions are whether regulators keep approving investment, where interest rates head, and how the yield compares with bonds. A below-consensus adjusted EPS quarter and a large equity raise are worth watching against the reaffirmed full-year guidance.

Headline figures (approximate, 2026-06-27): DUK shows revenue (ttm) ~$31.8B, adjusted eps guidance (fy2026) ~$6.55 to ~$6.80, adjusted eps growth target ~5% to ~7% per year through 2030, dividend yield ~3.4%; ED shows revenue trend Q1 2026 revenue ~$5.1 billion, up ~6% year over year; steady, regulator-driven growth rather than fast expansion, profitability Q1 2026 net income for common stock ~$924 million (~$2.55 per share); adjusted EPS ~$2.17 came in below consensus, full-year guidance Reaffirmed 2026 adjusted EPS guidance of ~$6.00 to $6.20, balance sheet / financing Capital-intensive with significant debt; funding growth partly via a ~$2 billion at-the-market equity program, which can dilute holders.

DUK and ED are related but distinct: same themes, different businesses and risks. Neither wins in the abstract; the right pick is whichever thesis you actually believe, sized so you are not over-concentrated in one theme. Walnut can show your combined DUK and ED exposure against your real portfolio. It is not an investment adviser.