PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL) Receives $35.70 Consensus Target Price from Brokerages

PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL) has received a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the ten analysts that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 12 month target price among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $35.70.

Several research analysts have recently commented on PPL shares. Barclays raised their target price on shares of PPL from $33.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Citigroup upgraded PPL from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, March 10th. UBS Group upped their target price on PPL from $35.00 to $36.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, March 21st. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their target price on PPL from $35.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, March 20th.

Insider Activity at PPL

In other PPL news, COO David J. Bonenberger sold 981 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $33.48, for a total value of $32,843.88. Following the completion of 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 transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Christine M. Martin sold 1,146 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $34.78, for a total value of $39,857.88. Following the sale, the insider now owns 37,167 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,292,668.26. This trade represents a 2.99 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 5,140 shares of company stock valued at $173,005. 0.22% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On PPL

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC lifted its holdings in shares of PPL by 10.7% during the third quarter. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC now owns 12,703 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $420,000 after purchasing an additional 1,228 shares during the period. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in PPL during the 3rd quarter worth $262,000. Pine Valley Investments Ltd Liability Co acquired a new position in PPL during the 3rd quarter worth about $225,000. Sanctuary Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of PPL by 85.7% in the 3rd quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 111,288 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $3,834,000 after buying an additional 51,366 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB increased its stake in shares of PPL by 32.3% in the third quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 41,169 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,362,000 after buying an additional 10,043 shares during the period. 76.99% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

PPL Trading Up 1.1 %

Shares of PPL stock opened at $35.67 on Tuesday. PPL has a 12-month low of $26.36 and a 12-month high of $36.64. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $34.70 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $33.55. The company has a quick ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13. The company has a market capitalization of $26.36 billion, a PE ratio of 29.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 0.65.

PPL (NYSE:PPL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The utilities provider reported $0.34 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.37 by ($0.03). PPL had a net margin of 10.49% and a return on equity of 8.88%. The business had revenue of $2.21 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.09 billion. As a group, analysts predict that PPL will post 1.83 earnings per share for the current year.

PPL Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th were issued a $0.2725 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 10th. This represents a $1.09 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.06%. This is a boost from PPL’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.26. PPL’s dividend payout ratio is 90.08%.

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.