Kentucky Retirement Systems Sells 386 Shares of PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL)

Kentucky Retirement Systems lowered its stake in PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL) by 0.7% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 55,593 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 386 shares during the quarter. Kentucky Retirement Systems’ holdings in PPL were worth $1,537,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Leelyn Smith LLC increased its stake in PPL by 0.4% in the second quarter. Leelyn Smith LLC now owns 79,887 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,209,000 after purchasing an additional 331 shares in the last quarter. TFC Financial Management Inc. increased its position in PPL by 15.7% in the 2nd quarter. TFC Financial Management Inc. now owns 2,611 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $72,000 after buying an additional 355 shares in the last quarter. Centennial Wealth Advisory LLC raised its stake in PPL by 3.4% during the 2nd quarter. Centennial Wealth Advisory LLC now owns 11,250 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $311,000 after buying an additional 366 shares during the period. Arkfeld Wealth Strategies L.L.C. boosted its holdings in PPL by 0.5% in the second quarter. Arkfeld Wealth Strategies L.L.C. now owns 77,885 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,134,000 after acquiring an additional 373 shares in the last quarter. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in PPL by 46.7% in the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,507 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $41,000 after acquiring an additional 480 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.99% of the company’s stock.

PPL Stock Performance

PPL stock opened at $32.46 on Friday. The business has a 50 day moving average of $30.89 and a 200-day moving average of $28.88. The firm has a market cap of $23.95 billion, a PE ratio of 31.51, a P/E/G ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.82. PPL Co. has a 12-month low of $22.20 and a 12-month high of $32.82. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.12.

PPL (NYSE:PPL) last announced its earnings results on Friday, August 2nd. The utilities provider reported $0.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.33 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $1.88 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.92 billion. PPL had a return on equity of 9.26% and a net margin of 10.17%. The business’s revenue was up 3.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.29 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that PPL Co. will post 1.72 earnings per share for the current year.

PPL Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 1st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 10th will be paid a $0.2575 dividend. This represents a $1.03 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.17%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 10th. PPL’s payout ratio is 100.00%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on PPL in a research report on Thursday. They set a “buy” rating and a $38.00 target price on the stock. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of PPL from $31.00 to $33.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of PPL from $35.00 to $37.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, September 16th. Finally, Bank of America upped their target price on shares of PPL from $33.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 29th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $33.75.

PPL Profile

PPL Corporation, an energy company, focuses on providing electricity and natural gas to approximately 3.6 million customers in the United States. It operates through three segments: Kentucky Regulated, Pennsylvania Regulated, and Rhode Island Regulated. The company delivers electricity to customers in Pennsylvania, Kentucky, Virginia, and Rhode Island; delivers natural gas to customers in Kentucky and Rhode Island; and generates electricity from power plants in Kentucky.