Citigroup Upgrades PPL (NYSE:PPL) to Strong-Buy

PPL (NYSE:PPL) was upgraded by equities research analysts at Citigroup from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report released on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

PPL has been the topic of several other research reports. BMO Capital Markets started coverage on shares of PPL in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $36.00 price target on the stock. Barclays raised their price target on shares of PPL from $33.00 to $36.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price target 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. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, PPL currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $34.70.

PPL Stock Down 0.8 %

NYSE:PPL opened at $34.02 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $25.11 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.11, a PEG ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 0.76. PPL has a 1-year low of $25.93 and a 1-year high of $35.91. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $33.60 and its 200-day moving average price is $33.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.71.

PPL (NYSE:PPL) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The utilities provider reported $0.34 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.37 by ($0.03). The business had revenue of $2.21 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.09 billion. PPL had a return on equity of 8.88% and a net margin of 10.49%. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that PPL will post 1.83 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at PPL

In other news, insider John R. Crockett III sold 1,589 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $33.12, for a total value of $52,627.68. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 10,845 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $359,186.40. This trade represents a 12.78 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Tadd J. Henninger sold 6,639 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $32.16, for a total transaction of $213,510.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 11,210 shares in the company, valued at approximately $360,513.60. This represents a 37.20 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 11,779 shares of company stock valued at $386,515 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On PPL

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Sanctuary Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of PPL by 85.7% in the third quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 111,288 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $3,834,000 after buying an additional 51,366 shares in the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC lifted its stake in shares of PPL by 2.3% in the third quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 4,260,426 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $140,935,000 after buying an additional 96,491 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its stake in shares of PPL by 0.9% in the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 6,512,407 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $215,430,000 after buying an additional 55,594 shares in the last quarter. DRW Securities LLC purchased a new position in shares of PPL in the third quarter worth about $1,218,000. Finally, Cbre Investment Management Listed Real Assets LLC lifted its stake in shares of PPL by 6.6% in the fourth quarter. Cbre Investment Management Listed Real Assets LLC now owns 1,997,610 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $64,842,000 after buying an additional 124,275 shares in the last quarter. 76.99% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.