Sagefield Capital LP Increases Stock Position in PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL)

Sagefield Capital LP raised its position in PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL) by 70.8% during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 138,859 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 57,569 shares during the quarter. Sagefield Capital LP’s holdings in PPL were worth $3,839,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Leelyn Smith LLC boosted its stake in PPL by 0.4% in the 2nd quarter. Leelyn Smith LLC now owns 79,887 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,209,000 after purchasing an additional 331 shares in the last quarter. TFC Financial Management Inc. raised its holdings in PPL by 15.7% in the second quarter. TFC Financial Management Inc. now owns 2,611 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $72,000 after buying an additional 355 shares during the last quarter. Centennial Wealth Advisory LLC lifted its stake in shares of PPL by 3.4% in the second quarter. Centennial Wealth Advisory LLC now owns 11,250 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $311,000 after buying an additional 366 shares in the last quarter. Arkfeld Wealth Strategies L.L.C. grew its holdings in shares of PPL by 0.5% during the second quarter. Arkfeld Wealth Strategies L.L.C. now owns 77,885 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,134,000 after buying an additional 373 shares during the last quarter. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of PPL by 46.7% during the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,507 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $41,000 after acquiring an additional 480 shares in the last quarter. 76.99% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

PPL Price Performance

NYSE PPL opened at $32.84 on Tuesday. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $30.99 and a 200-day moving average price of $28.95. PPL Co. has a 52 week low of $22.20 and a 52 week high of $32.92. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.12. The firm has a market capitalization of $24.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.88, a PEG ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.82.

PPL (NYSE:PPL) last announced its earnings results on Friday, August 2nd. The utilities provider reported $0.38 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.33 by $0.05. PPL had a net margin of 10.17% and a return on equity of 9.26%. The business had revenue of $1.88 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.92 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.29 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 3.2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that PPL Co. will post 1.72 earnings per share for the current year.

PPL Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 1st. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 10th will be issued a $0.2575 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 10th. This represents a $1.03 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.14%. PPL’s dividend payout ratio is currently 100.00%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on PPL shares. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on PPL from $31.00 to $33.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on PPL from $35.00 to $37.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, September 16th. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on PPL in a report on Thursday, September 19th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $38.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Bank of America upped their target price on shares of PPL from $33.00 to $34.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 29th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $33.75.

PPL 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.