Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank Boosts Stock Position in PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL)

Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank raised its position in PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL) by 5.6% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 162,050 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 8,534 shares during the period. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank’s holdings in PPL were worth $5,361,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of PPL. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC grew its position in shares of PPL by 8.7% in the second quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC now owns 496,165 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $13,719,000 after purchasing an additional 39,513 shares during the period. Jennison Associates LLC grew its holdings in PPL by 2.3% in the 3rd quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 4,260,426 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $140,935,000 after buying an additional 96,491 shares during the period. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of PPL by 10.0% during the 2nd quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 2,067,018 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $57,153,000 after acquiring an additional 188,160 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its holdings in shares of PPL by 0.9% during the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 6,512,407 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $215,430,000 after acquiring an additional 55,594 shares during the period. Finally, DRW Securities LLC purchased a new position in shares of PPL during the 3rd quarter worth about $1,218,000. 76.99% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider John R. Crockett III sold 9,161 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $34.35, for a total value of $314,680.35. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 12,434 shares in the company, valued at approximately $427,107.90. The trade was a 42.42 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

PPL has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of PPL from $35.00 to $37.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, September 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. assumed coverage on PPL in a report on Friday, October 25th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $37.00 price objective for the company. Barclays lifted their target price on PPL from $30.00 to $34.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. Bank of America upped their price target on PPL from $34.00 to $35.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on PPL in a research note on Thursday, September 19th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $38.00 price objective on the stock. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, PPL has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $35.50.

PPL Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:PPL opened at $34.44 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $25.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.75, a PEG ratio of 3.01 and a beta of 0.81. PPL Co. has a one year low of $25.35 and a one year high of $35.15. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $33.00 and its 200 day simple moving average is $30.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a current ratio of 1.29.

PPL (NYSE:PPL) last posted 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. The company had revenue of $2.07 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.10 billion. PPL had a net margin of 9.95% and a return on equity of 9.20%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 1.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.43 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that PPL Co. will post 1.72 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

PPL Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 2nd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 10th will be given a $0.2575 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 10th. This represents a $1.03 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.99%. PPL’s payout ratio is currently 91.96%.

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.