Barclays Increases PPL (NYSE:PPL) Price Target to $34.00

PPL (NYSE:PPL) had its target price boosted by equities research analysts at Barclays from $30.00 to $34.00 in a report released on Monday, Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an “equal weight” rating on the utilities provider’s stock. Barclays‘s price objective suggests a potential upside of 4.04% from the company’s current price.

A number of other equities analysts have also weighed in on PPL. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on shares of PPL in a research report on Thursday, September 19th. They set a “buy” rating and a $38.00 target price for the company. 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 report on Friday, August 23rd. Bank of America increased their target price on PPL from $33.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on PPL from $35.00 to $37.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $35.22.

PPL Price Performance

Shares of NYSE PPL opened at $32.68 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $24.11 billion, a PE ratio of 28.67, a PEG ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.82. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.12. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $32.15 and its 200-day moving average price is $29.74. PPL has a twelve month low of $23.36 and a twelve month high of $33.38.

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

Institutional Investors Weigh In On PPL

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Clearbridge Investments LLC increased its holdings in shares of PPL by 25.3% in the 2nd quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 5,890,854 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $162,882,000 after buying an additional 1,189,339 shares during the last quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. grew its position in PPL by 91.3% in the second quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 5,821,936 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $160,977,000 after acquiring an additional 2,778,820 shares in the last quarter. Electron Capital Partners LLC increased its stake in PPL by 71.3% in the second quarter. Electron Capital Partners LLC now owns 4,306,007 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $119,061,000 after acquiring an additional 1,792,200 shares during the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC raised its position in PPL by 21.8% during the first quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 4,217,410 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $116,105,000 after purchasing an additional 755,689 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of Montreal Can lifted its stake in PPL by 3.4% during the second quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 3,228,776 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $89,808,000 after purchasing an additional 104,662 shares during the last quarter. 76.99% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About PPL

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.