National Pension Service Sells 97,464 Shares of PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL)

National Pension Service lowered its stake in shares of PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL) by 8.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,000,154 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 97,464 shares during the period. National Pension Service owned 0.14% of PPL worth $32,465,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of PPL. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its position in shares of PPL by 12.0% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 34,758,947 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,115,824,000 after buying an additional 3,731,412 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its position in shares of PPL by 6.2% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 35,089,490 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,160,760,000 after buying an additional 2,050,122 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its position in shares of PPL by 5.0% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 36,459,099 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,215,363,000 after buying an additional 1,720,941 shares during the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI raised its position in shares of PPL by 322.6% during the third quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 1,223,128 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $40,461,000 after buying an additional 933,723 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Artemis Investment Management LLP bought a new stake in shares of PPL during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $15,668,000. Institutional investors own 76.99% of the company’s stock.

PPL Stock Up 2.2 %

NYSE PPL opened at $35.23 on Friday. 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 fifty day moving average of $33.29 and a two-hundred day moving average of $32.87. The firm has a market capitalization of $26.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.11, a PEG ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 0.83. PPL Co. has a 52 week low of $25.87 and a 52 week high of $35.28.

PPL (NYSE:PPL) last posted 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). The firm had revenue of $2.21 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.09 billion. PPL had a return on equity of 8.88% and a net margin of 10.49%. On average, analysts predict that PPL Co. will post 1.83 earnings per share for the current year.

PPL Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.2725 per share. This is a positive change from PPL’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.26. This represents a $1.09 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.09%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 10th. PPL’s payout ratio is currently 90.08%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

PPL has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of PPL from $33.00 to $36.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday. BMO Capital Markets started coverage on shares of PPL in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $36.00 target price for the company. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of PPL from $31.00 to $36.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Bank of America raised their target price on shares of PPL from $34.00 to $35.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group cut their target price on shares of PPL from $39.00 to $38.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $34.27.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider John R. Crockett III sold 1,589 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, January 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $33.12, for a total transaction of $52,627.68. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 10,845 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $359,186.40. The trade was a 12.78 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Tadd J. Henninger sold 6,639 shares of PPL stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.16, for a total value of $213,510.24. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 11,210 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $360,513.60. The trade was a 37.20 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 10,633 shares of company stock valued at $346,657. 0.22% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.