PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL) Given Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL) has been assigned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the ten ratings firms that are covering the company, Marketbeat reports. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 1 year price target among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $35.20.

A number of research firms recently weighed in on PPL. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of PPL from $33.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their target price on shares of PPL from $39.00 to $38.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. Citigroup upgraded shares of PPL from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, March 10th. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of PPL from $35.00 to $38.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday. Finally, BMO Capital Markets began coverage on shares of PPL in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $36.00 target price on the stock.

Insider Transactions at PPL

In other PPL news, COO David J. Bonenberger sold 981 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $33.48, for a total transaction of $32,843.88. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 45,414 shares in the company, valued at $1,520,460.72. This represents a 2.11 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, insider John R. Crockett III sold 1,589 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $33.12, for a total transaction of $52,627.68. Following the sale, the insider now owns 10,845 shares in the company, valued at approximately $359,186.40. This trade represents a 12.78 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 5,140 shares of company stock worth $173,005. 0.22% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On PPL

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. GSA Capital Partners LLP acquired a new stake in shares of PPL in the 3rd quarter valued at $273,000. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of PPL by 12.8% in the 3rd quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 8,231 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $272,000 after purchasing an additional 936 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC raised its holdings in shares of PPL by 8.7% in the 3rd quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 12,407 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $410,000 after purchasing an additional 988 shares in the last quarter. Mutual of America Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of PPL by 3.8% in the 3rd quarter. Mutual of America Capital Management LLC now owns 158,444 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $5,241,000 after purchasing an additional 5,865 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Prospera Financial Services Inc raised its holdings in shares of PPL by 13.9% in the 3rd quarter. Prospera Financial Services Inc now owns 34,674 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,147,000 after purchasing an additional 4,239 shares in the last quarter. 76.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

PPL Stock Performance

PPL opened at $35.00 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $25.84 billion, a PE ratio of 28.92, a PEG ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 0.76. PPL has a twelve month low of $25.93 and a twelve month high of $35.91. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $33.93 and its 200 day moving average price is $33.17. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13.

PPL (NYSE:PPL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The utilities provider reported $0.34 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.37 by ($0.03). The business had revenue of $2.21 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.09 billion. PPL had a return on equity of 8.88% and a net margin of 10.49%. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that PPL will post 1.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

PPL Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be issued a $0.2725 dividend. This is a positive change from PPL’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.26. This represents a $1.09 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.11%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 10th. PPL’s dividend payout ratio is currently 90.08%.

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.