GSA Capital Partners LLP Makes New Investment in PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL)

GSA Capital Partners LLP purchased a new stake in PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL) during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm purchased 8,250 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $273,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of PPL. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new position in PPL during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Baker Avenue Asset Management LP acquired a new position in shares of PPL in the 3rd quarter valued at $281,000. Covestor Ltd increased its position in shares of PPL by 139.2% in the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 1,512 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $50,000 after acquiring an additional 880 shares during the period. XML Financial LLC purchased a new position in PPL in the 3rd quarter worth $240,000. Finally, RKL Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in PPL during the 3rd quarter worth about $217,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.99% of the company’s stock.

PPL Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE PPL opened at $34.45 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17, a current ratio of 1.29 and a quick ratio of 1.07. The company has a market cap of $25.42 billion, a PE ratio of 30.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.00 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $32.75 and a 200-day simple moving average of $30.66. PPL Co. has a 12 month low of $25.35 and a 12 month high of $35.00.

PPL (NYSE:PPL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, November 1st. The utilities provider reported $0.42 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.42. The company had revenue of $2.07 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.10 billion. PPL had a return on equity of 9.20% and a net margin of 9.95%. The firm’s revenue was up 1.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.43 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that PPL Co. will post 1.72 earnings per share for the current year.

PPL Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 2nd. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 10th will be issued a $0.2575 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 10th. This represents a $1.03 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.99%. PPL’s dividend payout ratio is currently 91.97%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on PPL. Bank of America raised their price objective on PPL from $34.00 to $35.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. 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 research note on Monday, September 16th. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of PPL from $30.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of PPL from $31.00 to $33.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. assumed coverage on PPL in a research report on Friday, October 25th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $37.00 price target on the stock. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $35.50.

PPL Company 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.