Grandview Asset Management LLC Sells 832 Shares of PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL)

Grandview Asset Management LLC reduced its position in PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL) by 0.5% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 160,626 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 832 shares during the quarter. PPL comprises about 3.0% of Grandview Asset Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 7th largest holding. Grandview Asset Management LLC’s holdings in PPL were worth $5,314,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. SG Americas Securities LLC increased its stake in shares of PPL by 42.2% in the 3rd quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 159,391 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $5,273,000 after purchasing an additional 47,317 shares during the last quarter. Czech National Bank boosted its stake in PPL by 6.9% in the third quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 150,285 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $4,971,000 after buying an additional 9,702 shares in the last quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV grew its position in PPL by 66.6% in the third quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 2,283 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $76,000 after acquiring an additional 913 shares during the last quarter. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. acquired a new position in PPL during the second quarter worth about $64,000. Finally, Sanctuary Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of PPL in the second quarter worth about $1,619,000. 76.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on PPL. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of PPL from $35.00 to $37.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Bank of America raised their target price on shares of PPL from $33.00 to $34.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of PPL from $31.00 to $33.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on PPL in a research note on Thursday, September 19th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $38.00 price target for the company. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, PPL has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $34.55.

PPL Trading Down 0.6 %

NYSE:PPL traded down $0.20 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $32.55. 4,305,732 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,895,682. The stock has a market capitalization of $24.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.81 and a beta of 0.82. PPL Co. has a one year low of $22.35 and a one year high of $33.38. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $31.70 and a 200 day simple moving average of $29.31. 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 issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, August 2nd. The utilities provider reported $0.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.33 by $0.05. PPL had a return on equity of 9.26% and a net margin of 10.17%. The company had revenue of $1.88 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.92 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.29 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 3.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that PPL Co. will post 1.72 EPS for the current fiscal year.

PPL Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 1st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 10th were paid a $0.2575 dividend. This represents a $1.03 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.16%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 10th. PPL’s dividend payout ratio is currently 100.00%.

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.