Tidal Investments LLC Purchases 1,710 Shares of PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL)

Tidal Investments LLC grew its position in shares of PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL) by 11.9% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 16,114 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,710 shares during the quarter. Tidal Investments LLC’s holdings in PPL were worth $533,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Fortitude Family Office LLC increased its stake in PPL by 195.5% during the 3rd quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 780 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 516 shares in the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new position in shares of PPL during the third quarter valued at about $34,000. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. acquired a new position in shares of PPL during the second quarter valued at about $29,000. Redwood Wealth Management Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of PPL during the second quarter worth about $29,000. Finally, Covestor Ltd raised its holdings in shares of PPL by 139.2% in the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 1,512 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $50,000 after acquiring an additional 880 shares during the last quarter. 76.99% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

PPL Trading Up 1.3 %

NYSE:PPL opened at $32.43 on Monday. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $33.14 and its 200 day moving average is $31.27. PPL Co. has a 12 month low of $25.35 and a 12 month high of $35.15. The stock has a market capitalization of $23.93 billion, a PE ratio of 28.96, 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.

PPL (NYSE:PPL) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, November 1st. The utilities provider reported $0.42 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.42. PPL had a return on equity of 9.20% and a net margin of 9.95%. The firm had revenue of $2.07 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.10 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.43 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that PPL Co. will post 1.72 earnings per share for the current year.

PPL Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 2nd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 10th will be paid a $0.2575 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 10th. This represents a $1.03 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.18%. PPL’s payout ratio is 91.96%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

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

Insider Activity

In related news, insider John R. Crockett III sold 9,161 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $34.35, for a total transaction of $314,680.35. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 12,434 shares in the company, valued at approximately $427,107.90. The trade was a 42.42 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Tadd J. Henninger sold 6,639 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 17th. The stock was 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $360,513.60. This represents a 37.20 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

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.