Ascent Group LLC Makes New $1.71 Million Investment in PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL)

Ascent Group LLC acquired a new stake in PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL) during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 51,822 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,714,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Fortitude Family Office LLC increased its stake in PPL by 195.5% in the 3rd quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 780 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 516 shares during the last quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. acquired a new position in PPL during the second quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Redwood Wealth Management Group LLC bought a new position in PPL in the second quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new position in shares of PPL during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $34,000. Finally, Lynx Investment Advisory bought a new stake in shares of PPL during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $38,000. Institutional investors own 76.99% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on PPL shares. Barclays raised their target price on shares of PPL from $30.00 to $34.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Bank of America boosted their price objective on shares of PPL from $34.00 to $35.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. 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 target price for the company. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on PPL from $31.00 to $33.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. started coverage on PPL in a research report on Friday, October 25th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $37.00 price objective for the company. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $35.50.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider John R. Crockett III sold 9,161 shares of the 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 sale, the insider now owns 12,434 shares in the company, valued at approximately $427,107.90. This trade represents a 42.42 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 0.22% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

PPL Trading Down 1.4 %

Shares of PPL stock opened at $34.44 on Tuesday. PPL Co. has a 52-week low of $25.35 and a 52-week high of $35.15. The stock has a market cap of $25.42 billion, a PE ratio of 30.75, a PEG ratio of 3.01 and a beta of 0.82. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $33.00 and a 200-day moving average of $30.88. 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 (NYSE:PPL) last announced its earnings results on Friday, November 1st. The utilities provider reported $0.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.42. The firm had revenue of $2.07 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.10 billion. PPL had a net margin of 9.95% and a return on equity of 9.20%. The business’s revenue was up 1.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.43 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that PPL Co. will post 1.72 EPS for the current year.

PPL Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 2nd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.2575 per share. This represents a $1.03 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.99%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 10th. PPL’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 91.97%.

About PPL

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.