Harbour Investments Inc. Sells 1,018 Shares of PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL)

Harbour Investments Inc. lessened its stake in shares of PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL) by 34.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,903 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 1,018 shares during the period. Harbour Investments Inc.’s holdings in PPL were worth $62,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Global Retirement Partners LLC increased its position in PPL by 2.4% during the 4th quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 12,530 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $407,000 after purchasing an additional 299 shares during the period. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. increased its holdings in PPL by 1.7% during the third quarter. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. now owns 17,696 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $585,000 after buying an additional 301 shares during the period. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in PPL by 4.7% in the fourth quarter. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 6,797 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $221,000 after buying an additional 305 shares in the last quarter. Arkfeld Wealth Strategies L.L.C. boosted its position in PPL by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Arkfeld Wealth Strategies L.L.C. now owns 78,296 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,480,000 after acquiring an additional 313 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Choreo LLC boosted its position in PPL by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. Choreo LLC now owns 37,622 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,230,000 after acquiring an additional 322 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.99% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, COO David J. Bonenberger sold 981 shares of PPL 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 completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 45,414 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,520,460.72. The trade was a 2.11 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Christine M. Martin sold 1,146 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $34.78, for a total transaction of $39,857.88. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 37,167 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,292,668.26. This represents a 2.99 % 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 valued at $173,005. Company insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

PPL Stock Up 0.0 %

PPL stock opened at $34.77 on Tuesday. PPL Co. has a fifty-two week low of $25.93 and a fifty-two week high of $35.91. The company has a market cap of $25.67 billion, a PE ratio of 28.73, a PEG ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 0.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a current ratio of 0.86. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $34.05 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $33.22.

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

PPL Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be issued a $0.2725 dividend. This represents a $1.09 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.14%. This is a positive change from PPL’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.26. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 10th. PPL’s dividend payout ratio is presently 90.08%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Citigroup upgraded PPL from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, March 10th. UBS Group raised their price target on shares of PPL from $35.00 to $36.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of PPL from $33.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of PPL from $35.00 to $38.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price objective on PPL from $39.00 to $38.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, PPL presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $35.27.

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.