PPL (NYSE:PPL) Reaches New 1-Year High – What’s Next?

PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL)’s share price reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $35.04 and last traded at $34.94, with a volume of 141380 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $34.84.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of PPL from $35.00 to $37.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Bank of America lifted their price objective on shares of PPL from $34.00 to $35.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of PPL in a research note on Thursday, September 19th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $38.00 price objective for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. began coverage on shares of PPL in a research report on Friday, October 25th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $37.00 price target for the company. Finally, Barclays lifted their price target on shares of PPL from $30.00 to $34.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $35.50.

PPL Stock Up 0.7 %

The stock’s fifty day moving average is $32.83 and its two-hundred day moving average is $30.76. The company has a market capitalization of $25.89 billion, a PE ratio of 31.11, a P/E/G ratio of 2.97 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a current ratio of 1.29, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17.

PPL (NYSE:PPL) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, November 1st. The utilities provider reported $0.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.42. PPL had a return on equity of 9.20% and a net margin of 9.95%. The business had revenue of $2.07 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.10 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.43 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 1.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts predict that PPL Co. will post 1.72 EPS for the current year.

PPL Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 2nd. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 10th will be paid a $0.2575 dividend. This represents a $1.03 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.94%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 10th. PPL’s dividend payout ratio is currently 91.97%.

Insider Activity at PPL

In other news, insider John R. Crockett III sold 9,161 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $34.35, for a total transaction 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 sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.22% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On PPL

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Tidal Investments LLC increased its position in shares of PPL by 11.9% during the third quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 16,114 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $533,000 after buying an additional 1,710 shares during the period. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB increased its position in shares of PPL by 32.3% during the third quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 41,169 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,362,000 after buying an additional 10,043 shares during the period. Sanctuary Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of PPL by 85.7% during the third quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 111,288 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $3,834,000 after buying an additional 51,366 shares during the period. Pine Valley Investments Ltd Liability Co bought a new stake in shares of PPL during the third quarter valued at about $225,000. Finally, Toronto Dominion Bank grew its holdings in shares of PPL by 82.1% during the third quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 402,845 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $13,326,000 after purchasing an additional 181,627 shares in the last quarter. 76.99% of the stock is currently owned by 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.