PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL) Holdings Lifted by Jacobi Capital Management LLC

Jacobi Capital Management LLC grew its position in PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL) by 3.1% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 114,349 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 3,405 shares during the period. Jacobi Capital Management LLC’s holdings in PPL were worth $3,712,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Kentucky Trust Co bought a new position in PPL in the 4th quarter worth about $32,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new position in PPL in the 3rd quarter worth about $34,000. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton grew its position in PPL by 1,092.2% in the 4th quarter. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton now owns 1,216 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 1,114 shares during the last quarter. Covestor Ltd grew its position in PPL by 139.2% in the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 1,512 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $50,000 after purchasing an additional 880 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Newton One Investments LLC bought a new position in shares of PPL in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $49,000. Institutional investors own 76.99% of the company’s stock.

PPL Trading Up 2.2 %

PPL stock opened at $35.23 on Friday. PPL Co. has a 52 week low of $25.87 and a 52 week high of $35.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a current ratio of 0.86. The firm has a market capitalization of $26.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.11, a P/E/G ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 0.83. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $33.29 and a 200 day moving average price of $32.87.

PPL (NYSE:PPL) last issued its quarterly earnings results 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 for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.09 billion. PPL had a net margin of 10.49% and a return on equity of 8.88%. Research analysts forecast that PPL Co. will post 1.83 EPS for the current year.

PPL Increases Dividend

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

PPL has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets initiated coverage on shares of PPL in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $36.00 price objective for the company. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of PPL from $33.00 to $36.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday. Citigroup increased their price objective 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 increased their price objective 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 decreased their price objective 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 investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $34.27.

Insider Activity at PPL

In related news, COO David J. Bonenberger sold 981 shares of PPL stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $33.48, for a total transaction of $32,843.88. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 45,414 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,520,460.72. This trade represents a 2.11 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, SVP Tadd J. Henninger sold 1,424 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $33.48, for a total value of $47,675.52. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 11,259 shares in the company, valued at approximately $376,951.32. The trade was a 11.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 10,633 shares of company stock valued at $346,657. Corporate insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

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.