PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL) Shares Sold by Valley National Advisers Inc.

Valley National Advisers Inc. decreased its stake in shares of PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL) by 12.7% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 35,740 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 5,198 shares during the quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc.’s holdings in PPL were worth $1,182,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its holdings in PPL by 4.2% during the third quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 60,749 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,010,000 after purchasing an additional 2,474 shares in the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. increased its position in shares of PPL by 35.4% during the third quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 48,220 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,585,000 after acquiring an additional 12,609 shares during the last quarter. Spirit of America Management Corp NY increased its position in shares of PPL by 4.8% during the third quarter. Spirit of America Management Corp NY now owns 46,100 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,525,000 after acquiring an additional 2,100 shares during the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its position in shares of PPL by 5,390.2% during the third quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 563,015 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $18,625,000 after acquiring an additional 552,760 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ausbil Investment Management Ltd purchased a new position in shares of PPL in the third quarter valued at approximately $4,101,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.99% of the company’s stock.

PPL Stock Down 1.3 %

PPL stock opened at $32.43 on Friday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $32.26 and a 200-day simple moving average of $29.84. The firm has a market capitalization of $23.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.49, a P/E/G ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.12, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 1.11. PPL Co. has a one year low of $24.10 and a one year high of $33.38.

PPL (NYSE:PPL) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, August 2nd. The utilities provider reported $0.38 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.33 by $0.05. PPL had a net margin of 10.17% and a return on equity of 9.26%. The company had revenue of $1.88 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.92 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.29 EPS. PPL’s revenue was up 3.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts expect that PPL Co. will post 1.72 earnings per share for the current year.

PPL Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 1st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 10th were issued a dividend of $0.2575 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, September 10th. This represents a $1.03 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.18%. PPL’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 100.00%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

PPL has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on shares of PPL in a research note on Thursday, September 19th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $38.00 price target for the company. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of PPL from $31.00 to $33.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. initiated coverage on shares of PPL in a research note on Friday. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $37.00 price target for the company. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of PPL from $30.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Finally, Bank of America boosted their price objective on shares of PPL from $33.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $35.40.

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.