Mutual Advisors LLC Has $1.07 Million Position in PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL)

Mutual Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL) by 1.8% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 32,147 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 562 shares during the period. Mutual Advisors LLC’s holdings in PPL were worth $1,066,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of PPL. Fortitude Family Office LLC lifted its stake in shares of PPL by 195.5% during the 3rd quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 780 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 516 shares during the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new stake in PPL during the third quarter worth approximately $34,000. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton grew its position in shares of PPL by 1,092.2% in the fourth quarter. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton now owns 1,216 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 1,114 shares during the last quarter. Covestor Ltd increased its stake in shares of PPL by 139.2% during the third quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 1,512 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $50,000 after purchasing an additional 880 shares during the period. Finally, McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in PPL by 5,759.3% during the 3rd quarter. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 1,582 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $52,000 after purchasing an additional 1,555 shares during the last quarter. 76.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

PPL Trading Up 0.4 %

Shares of PPL opened at $32.88 on Friday. 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 Co. has a 52-week low of $25.35 and a 52-week high of $35.15. The firm has a market cap of $24.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.35, a PEG ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 0.83. The business’s fifty day moving average is $33.04 and its 200-day moving average is $32.03.

PPL (NYSE:PPL) last issued its earnings results on Friday, November 1st. The utilities provider reported $0.42 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate 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 during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.10 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.43 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 1.1% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts anticipate that PPL Co. will post 1.72 EPS for the current fiscal year.

PPL Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 2nd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 10th were paid a dividend of $0.2575 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 10th. This represents a $1.03 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.13%. PPL’s payout ratio is presently 91.97%.

Insider Transactions at PPL

In other news, SVP Tadd J. Henninger sold 6,639 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $32.16, for a total transaction of $213,510.24. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 11,210 shares in the company, valued at approximately $360,513.60. The trade was a 37.20 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider John R. Crockett III sold 9,161 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $34.35, for a total transaction of $314,680.35. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 12,434 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $427,107.90. This trade represents a 42.42 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

PPL has been the topic of a number of research reports. Bank of America upped their price objective on PPL from $34.00 to $35.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price target on shares of PPL from $39.00 to $38.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of PPL from $31.00 to $36.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. BMO Capital Markets assumed coverage on shares of PPL in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $36.00 target price on the stock. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. began coverage on PPL in a research note on Friday, October 25th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $37.00 price target for the company. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $34.00.

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.