PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL) have been assigned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the eleven research firms that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, eight have issued a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price target among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $34.09.

PPL has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price target on shares of PPL from $39.00 to $38.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on PPL from $35.00 to $37.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Citigroup upped their price target on PPL from $31.00 to $36.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Barclays raised PPL from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. began coverage on shares of PPL in a research report on Friday, October 25th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $37.00 target price on the stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other PPL news, insider John R. Crockett III sold 9,161 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $34.35, for a total transaction of $314,680.35. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 12,434 shares in the company, valued at $427,107.90. The trade was a 42.42 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Tadd J. Henninger sold 6,639 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.16, for a total transaction of $213,510.24. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 11,210 shares in the company, valued at $360,513.60. The trade was a 37.20 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.22% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in PPL. Fortitude Family Office LLC boosted its holdings in PPL by 195.5% in the third quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 780 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 516 shares in the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new position in shares of PPL in the 3rd quarter valued at $34,000. Redwood Wealth Management Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of PPL in the 2nd quarter valued at $29,000. Covestor Ltd raised its stake in PPL by 139.2% during the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 1,512 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $50,000 after acquiring an additional 880 shares in the last quarter. Finally, McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. lifted its position in PPL by 5,759.3% in the third quarter. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 1,582 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $52,000 after acquiring an additional 1,555 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.99% of the company’s stock.

PPL Stock Performance

Shares of PPL stock opened at $32.27 on Friday. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $33.12 and its 200 day moving average price is $31.54. The company has a market cap of $23.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.81, a PEG ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.82. 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 has a one year low of $25.35 and a one year high of $35.15.

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

PPL Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 2nd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 10th were paid a $0.2575 dividend. This represents a $1.03 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.19%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 10th. PPL’s payout ratio is currently 91.96%.

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.