Matrix Trust Co Has $96,000 Stock Position in PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL)

Matrix Trust Co boosted its position in PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL) by 576.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,954 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 2,517 shares during the quarter. Matrix Trust Co’s holdings in PPL were worth $96,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its holdings in PPL by 12.0% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 34,758,947 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,115,824,000 after acquiring an additional 3,731,412 shares during the period. Point72 Asset Management L.P. lifted its position in shares of PPL by 91.3% during the 2nd quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 5,821,936 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $160,977,000 after purchasing an additional 2,778,820 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its stake in PPL by 6.2% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 35,089,490 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,160,760,000 after purchasing an additional 2,050,122 shares during the period. Electron Capital Partners LLC grew its holdings in PPL by 71.3% in the 2nd quarter. Electron Capital Partners LLC now owns 4,306,007 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $119,061,000 after buying an additional 1,792,200 shares during the last quarter. Finally, State Street Corp increased its position in PPL by 5.0% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 36,459,099 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,215,363,000 after buying an additional 1,720,941 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 76.99% of the company’s stock.

PPL Stock Down 0.2 %

PPL opened at $31.68 on Tuesday. PPL Co. has a twelve month low of $25.35 and a twelve month high of $35.15. The firm has a market cap of $23.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.29, a PEG ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.83. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $33.08 and its 200-day simple moving average is $31.75. 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 (NYSE:PPL) last issued 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. The firm had revenue of $2.07 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.10 billion. PPL had a net margin of 9.95% and a return on equity of 9.20%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 1.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.43 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that PPL Co. will post 1.72 EPS for the current fiscal year.

PPL Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 2nd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 10th were paid a $0.2575 dividend. This represents a $1.03 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.25%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 10th. PPL’s dividend payout ratio is currently 91.96%.

Insider Transactions at PPL

In related news, SVP Tadd J. Henninger sold 6,639 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.16, for a total value of $213,510.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 11,210 shares in the company, valued at $360,513.60. The trade was a 37.20 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider John R. Crockett III sold 9,161 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the insider now owns 12,434 shares in the company, valued at $427,107.90. The trade was a 42.42 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently weighed in on PPL. BMO Capital Markets began coverage on PPL in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $36.00 price objective for the company. Bank of America raised their price target on shares of PPL from $34.00 to $35.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of PPL from $31.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Barclays upgraded shares of PPL from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on PPL from $35.00 to $37.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus 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.