PPL (PPL) Expected to Announce Quarterly Earnings on Thursday

PPL (NYSE:PPL) is projected to issue its quarterly earnings data before the market opens on Thursday, February 13th. Analysts expect the company to announce earnings of $0.37 per share and revenue of $2.51 billion for the quarter. Investors interested in listening to the company’s conference call can do so using this link.

PPL Trading Up 0.9 %

Shares of PPL stock opened at $34.53 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.29, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17. The stock has a market capitalization of $25.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.75 and a beta of 0.83. PPL has a 12-month low of $25.60 and a 12-month high of $35.15. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $32.83 and its 200-day moving average price is $32.48.

PPL Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 2nd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 10th were paid a $0.2575 dividend. This represents a $1.03 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.98%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 10th. PPL’s payout ratio is 91.96%.

Insider Activity at PPL

In other PPL news, SVP Tadd J. Henninger sold 6,639 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.16, for a total value of $213,510.24. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 11,210 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $360,513.60. The trade was a 37.20 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, COO David J. Bonenberger sold 981 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $33.48, for a total transaction of $32,843.88. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 45,414 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,520,460.72. This trade represents a 2.11 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 19,794 shares of company stock worth $661,338 in the last quarter. 0.22% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group cut their target price on shares of PPL from $39.00 to $38.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. BMO Capital Markets started coverage on shares of PPL in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $36.00 price objective for the company. Bank of America upped their target price on shares of PPL from $34.00 to $35.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. initiated coverage on PPL in a research report on Friday, October 25th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $37.00 price target for the company. Finally, Barclays decreased their price objective on PPL from $34.00 to $33.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, PPL currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $34.00.

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.