PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL) Shares Purchased by Cwm LLC

Cwm LLC boosted its stake in PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL) by 2.8% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 24,549 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 661 shares during the quarter. Cwm LLC’s holdings in PPL were worth $812,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. acquired a new stake in PPL in the 2nd quarter valued at $29,000. Redwood Wealth Management Group LLC purchased a new position in PPL in the 2nd quarter valued at $29,000. Lynx Investment Advisory purchased a new position in PPL in the 2nd quarter valued at $38,000. Family Firm Inc. purchased a new position in PPL in the 2nd quarter valued at $38,000. Finally, Central Pacific Bank Trust Division purchased a new position in PPL in the 1st quarter valued at $42,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.99% of the company’s stock.

PPL Stock Up 0.9 %

NYSE PPL opened at $32.66 on Friday. PPL Co. has a 52 week low of $23.36 and a 52 week high of $33.38. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.12. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $32.08 and its 200-day simple moving average is $29.63. The firm has a market cap of $24.10 billion, a PE ratio of 28.65, a P/E/G ratio of 2.74 and a beta of 0.82.

PPL (NYSE:PPL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, August 2nd. The utilities provider reported $0.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.33 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $1.88 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.92 billion. PPL had a return on equity of 9.26% and a net margin of 10.17%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 3.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.29 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that PPL Co. will post 1.72 earnings per share for the current year.

PPL Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 1st. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 10th were given a dividend of $0.2575 per share. This represents a $1.03 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.15%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 10th. PPL’s payout ratio is 90.35%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have weighed in on PPL. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on PPL in a report on Thursday, September 19th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $38.00 price objective on the stock. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on PPL from $31.00 to $33.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on 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 raised their price objective on PPL from $33.00 to $34.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 29th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, PPL has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $34.56.

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.