Rhumbline Advisers Reduces Holdings in PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL)

Rhumbline Advisers cut its stake in PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL) by 0.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,277,635 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 3,094 shares during the period. Rhumbline Advisers owned about 0.17% of PPL worth $41,472,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Palacios Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of PPL in the 4th quarter valued at about $520,000. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. increased its position in PPL by 2.2% during the fourth quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 450,249 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $14,642,000 after buying an additional 9,656 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its stake in PPL by 8.4% in the fourth quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 229,492 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $7,450,000 after buying an additional 17,821 shares during the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC boosted its holdings in shares of PPL by 128.0% in the fourth quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 82,063 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,641,000 after acquiring an additional 46,071 shares during the period. Finally, Kentucky Trust Co purchased a new position in shares of PPL during the fourth quarter worth approximately $32,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.99% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at PPL

In other 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 value of $314,680.35. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 12,434 shares in the company, valued at $427,107.90. This represents a 42.42 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 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 of the company’s stock, 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. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 19,794 shares of company stock valued at $661,338. Insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently weighed in on PPL shares. Barclays decreased their price target on shares of PPL from $34.00 to $33.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. BMO Capital Markets started coverage on PPL in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $36.00 price target on the stock. Citigroup increased their price objective on PPL from $31.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their target price on PPL from $39.00 to $38.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. Finally, Bank of America increased their price target on PPL from $34.00 to $35.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $34.00.

PPL Stock Performance

NYSE:PPL opened at $33.76 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.07, a current ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17. PPL Co. has a fifty-two week low of $25.87 and a fifty-two week high of $35.15. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $32.86 and its 200-day simple moving average is $32.61. The stock has a market cap of $24.91 billion, a PE ratio of 30.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.75 and a beta of 0.83.

PPL (NYSE:PPL) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The utilities provider reported $0.34 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.37 by ($0.03). PPL had a return on equity of 9.20% and a net margin of 9.95%. The company had revenue of $2.21 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.09 billion. Analysts expect that PPL Co. will post 1.72 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

PPL Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be given a dividend of $0.2725 per share. This represents a $1.09 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.23%. This is an increase from PPL’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.26. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 10th. PPL’s payout ratio is presently 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.