PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL) Receives Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

Shares of PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL) have been assigned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the ten brokerages that are covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price objective among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $35.50.

PPL has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Barclays boosted their price objective on PPL from $30.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on PPL from $35.00 to $37.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, September 16th. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on PPL in a report on Thursday, September 19th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $38.00 price objective for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. initiated coverage on PPL in a research report on Friday, October 25th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $37.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on PPL from $31.00 to $33.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd.

PPL Trading Up 0.1 %

NYSE PPL opened at $32.92 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $24.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.39, a PEG ratio of 2.90 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 52 week low of $25.35 and a 52 week high of $35.15. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $33.14 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $31.07.

PPL (NYSE:PPL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, November 1st. The utilities provider reported $0.42 earnings per share 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 firm had revenue of $2.07 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.10 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.43 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 1.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts anticipate that PPL will post 1.72 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

PPL Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 2nd. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 10th will be paid a $0.2575 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 10th. This represents a $1.03 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.13%. PPL’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 91.96%.

Insider Buying and Selling at PPL

In other news, insider John R. Crockett III sold 9,161 shares of the company’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 value of $314,680.35. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 12,434 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $427,107.90. This represents a 42.42 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 0.22% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of PPL

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of PPL. Fortitude Family Office LLC increased its holdings in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 516 shares during the period. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. bought a new position in shares of PPL in the 2nd quarter worth $29,000. Redwood Wealth Management Group LLC bought a new position in shares of PPL in the 2nd quarter worth $29,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new position in shares of PPL in the 3rd quarter worth $34,000. Finally, Family Firm Inc. bought a new position in shares of PPL in the 2nd quarter worth $38,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.99% of the company’s stock.

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.