Empowered Funds LLC Acquires 988 Shares of PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL)

Empowered Funds LLC grew its holdings in PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL) by 8.7% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 12,407 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 988 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC’s holdings in PPL were worth $410,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Leelyn Smith LLC increased its position in PPL by 0.4% during the second quarter. Leelyn Smith LLC now owns 79,887 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,209,000 after acquiring an additional 331 shares during the last quarter. TFC Financial Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of PPL by 15.7% in the 2nd quarter. TFC Financial Management Inc. now owns 2,611 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $72,000 after purchasing an additional 355 shares during the period. Centennial Wealth Advisory LLC lifted its stake in shares of PPL by 3.4% in the 2nd quarter. Centennial Wealth Advisory LLC now owns 11,250 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $311,000 after purchasing an additional 366 shares during the period. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of PPL by 3.1% in the third quarter. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC now owns 12,360 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $409,000 after buying an additional 370 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Exchange Traded Concepts LLC grew its position in PPL by 1.4% during the third quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 26,264 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $869,000 after buying an additional 370 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.99% of the company’s stock.

PPL Price Performance

Shares of NYSE PPL opened at $34.45 on Monday. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $32.75 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $30.68. The company has a market cap of $25.42 billion, a PE ratio of 30.76, a P/E/G ratio of 3.00 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a current ratio of 1.29. PPL Co. has a fifty-two week low of $25.35 and a fifty-two week high of $35.00.

PPL (NYSE:PPL) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, November 1st. The utilities provider reported $0.42 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.42. PPL had a return on equity of 9.20% and a net margin of 9.95%. The company had revenue of $2.07 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.10 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.43 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 1.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts expect that PPL Co. will post 1.72 EPS for the current fiscal year.

PPL Announces Dividend

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of PPL from $35.00 to $37.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on PPL in a report on Thursday, September 19th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $38.00 target price on the stock. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on PPL from $31.00 to $33.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. started coverage on PPL in a research report on Friday, October 25th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $37.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Bank of America increased their target price on shares of PPL from $34.00 to $35.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $35.50.

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.