PPL (NYSE:PPL) PT Raised to $28.00

PPL (NYSE:PPL) had its price target lifted by Mizuho from $27.00 to $28.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Thursday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a “neutral” rating on the utilities provider’s stock. Mizuho’s price objective suggests a potential downside of 0.32% from the company’s current price.

Several other analysts have also issued reports on the company. Argus raised PPL from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $30.00 price target for the company in a report on Friday, March 8th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on PPL from $32.00 to $30.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 20th. StockNews.com cut shares of PPL from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Thursday. Bank of America lifted their price target on shares of PPL from $29.00 to $30.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 11th. Finally, Barclays increased their price objective on shares of PPL from $27.00 to $28.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 14th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, PPL presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $32.27.

PPL Price Performance

NYSE PPL opened at $28.09 on Thursday. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $27.00 and a 200-day moving average price of $26.39. PPL has a 52 week low of $22.20 and a 52 week high of $28.93. The company has a quick ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 1.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.12. The firm has a market capitalization of $20.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.27, a PEG ratio of 2.54 and a beta of 0.81.

PPL (NYSE:PPL) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The utilities provider reported $0.54 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.52 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $2.30 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.39 billion. PPL had a net margin of 9.29% and a return on equity of 8.80%. The firm’s revenue was down 4.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.48 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that PPL will post 1.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On PPL

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in PPL. Altshuler Shaham Ltd bought a new position in shares of PPL during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Allworth Financial LP lifted its position in PPL by 179.8% during the fourth quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 1,038 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 667 shares during the last quarter. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of PPL in the 4th quarter worth $30,000. Authentikos Wealth Advisory LLC bought a new stake in shares of PPL in the 3rd quarter worth about $35,000. Finally, Anchor Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of PPL during the 4th quarter valued at about $35,000. 76.99% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.