PPL (NYSE:PPL) Shares Gap Down – Here’s What Happened

PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL)’s stock price gapped down before the market opened on Friday . The stock had previously closed at $32.56, but opened at $31.76. PPL shares last traded at $33.01, with a volume of 480,948 shares.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have commented on PPL. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of 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 shares of PPL in a research note on Friday, October 25th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $37.00 price objective on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on shares of PPL in a research note on Thursday, September 19th. They set a “buy” rating and a $38.00 price objective on the stock. Barclays boosted 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. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of PPL from $35.00 to $37.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $35.40.

PPL Stock Performance

The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $32.33 and its 200-day simple moving average is $30.04. The stock has a market cap of $23.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.12.

PPL (NYSE:PPL) last announced its earnings results on Friday, November 1st. The utilities provider reported $0.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.39 by $0.03. PPL had a net margin of 10.17% and a return on equity of 9.26%. The firm had revenue of $2.07 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.10 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.43 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 1.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts forecast that PPL Co. will post 1.72 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

PPL Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 1st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 10th were issued a dividend of $0.2575 per share. This represents a $1.03 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.26%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 10th. PPL’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 90.35%.

Institutional Trading of PPL

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in PPL. Fortitude Family Office LLC lifted its stake in PPL by 195.5% in the 3rd 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 during the last quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of PPL during the second quarter worth $29,000. Redwood Wealth Management Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of PPL during the second quarter worth $29,000. Lynx Investment Advisory acquired a new stake in shares of PPL during the second quarter worth $38,000. Finally, Family Firm Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of PPL during the second quarter worth $38,000. Institutional investors own 76.99% of the company’s stock.

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.