Kentucky Retirement Systems Sells 698 Shares of PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL)

Kentucky Retirement Systems decreased its stake in shares of PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL) by 1.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 50,697 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 698 shares during the quarter. Kentucky Retirement Systems’ holdings in PPL were worth $1,646,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in PPL. Global Retirement Partners LLC increased its position in PPL by 2.4% during the 4th quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 12,530 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $407,000 after purchasing an additional 299 shares during the period. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. increased its position in PPL by 1.7% during the 3rd quarter. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. now owns 17,696 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $585,000 after purchasing an additional 301 shares during the period. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of PPL by 4.7% in the 4th quarter. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 6,797 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $221,000 after buying an additional 305 shares during the last quarter. Arkfeld Wealth Strategies L.L.C. grew its position in shares of PPL by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. Arkfeld Wealth Strategies L.L.C. now owns 78,296 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,480,000 after buying an additional 313 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Choreo LLC grew its position in shares of PPL by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Choreo LLC now owns 37,622 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,230,000 after buying an additional 322 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 76.99% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

PPL has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of PPL from $31.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Barclays cut their price objective on shares of PPL from $34.00 to $33.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. BMO Capital Markets initiated coverage on shares of PPL in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $36.00 price objective on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price objective on shares of PPL from $39.00 to $38.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. Finally, Bank of America lifted their price objective on shares of PPL from $34.00 to $35.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, PPL currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $34.00.

PPL Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE PPL opened at $34.75 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13. PPL Co. has a 12 month low of $25.87 and a 12 month high of $35.15. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $33.01 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $32.75. The stock has a market cap of $25.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.72, a PEG ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 0.83.

PPL (NYSE:PPL) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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 for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.09 billion. As a group, analysts predict that PPL Co. will post 1.83 earnings per share for the current year.

PPL Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Monday, March 10th will be paid a $0.2725 dividend. This is a boost from PPL’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.26. This represents a $1.09 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.14%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 10th. PPL’s payout ratio is currently 85.12%.

Insider Activity at PPL

In related news, COO David J. Bonenberger sold 981 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 28th. The shares were 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 $1,520,460.72. The trade was a 2.11 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, SVP Tadd J. Henninger sold 1,424 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $33.48, for a total transaction of $47,675.52. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 11,259 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $376,951.32. This represents a 11.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 10,633 shares of company stock worth $346,657 in the last three months. Company insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

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.