JPMorgan Chase & Co. Has $132.20 Million Stake in PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL)

JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced its holdings in PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL) by 12.8% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 3,996,486 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 586,485 shares during the quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co.’s holdings in PPL were worth $132,204,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its position in PPL by 6.3% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 882,453 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $29,192,000 after purchasing an additional 52,547 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its position in shares of PPL by 12.0% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 34,758,947 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,115,824,000 after buying an additional 3,731,412 shares during the period. Tidal Investments LLC grew its holdings in PPL by 11.9% during the 3rd quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 16,114 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $533,000 after acquiring an additional 1,710 shares during the period. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB increased its holdings in PPL by 32.3% in the third quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 41,169 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,362,000 after purchasing an additional 10,043 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sanctuary Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of PPL by 85.7% in the 3rd quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 111,288 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $3,834,000 after acquiring an additional 51,366 shares during the last quarter. 76.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

PPL Trading Up 0.2 %

Shares of PPL stock opened at $32.46 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $23.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.82. The company has a current ratio of 1.29, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $33.13 and a 200 day simple moving average of $31.50. PPL Co. has a 1 year low of $25.35 and a 1 year high of $35.15.

PPL (NYSE:PPL) last issued its earnings results on Friday, November 1st. The utilities provider reported $0.42 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.42. PPL had a net margin of 9.95% and a return on equity of 9.20%. The company had revenue of $2.07 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.10 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.43 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts predict that PPL Co. 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 issued a dividend of $0.2575 per share. This represents a $1.03 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.17%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 10th. PPL’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 91.96%.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently commented on PPL shares. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of PPL from $35.00 to $37.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Barclays raised shares of PPL from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price target on PPL from $39.00 to $38.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. assumed coverage on shares of PPL in a research report on Friday, October 25th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $37.00 price objective for the company. Finally, BMO Capital Markets assumed coverage on PPL in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $36.00 target price on the stock. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $34.09.

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.