PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL) Holdings Decreased by B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc.

B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. decreased its holdings in shares of PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL) by 28.8% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 25,904 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 10,459 shares during the quarter. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc.’s holdings in PPL were worth $858,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the business. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its holdings in PPL by 12.0% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 34,758,947 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,115,824,000 after acquiring an additional 3,731,412 shares during the last quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. raised its position in shares of PPL by 91.3% during the 2nd quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 5,821,936 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $160,977,000 after purchasing an additional 2,778,820 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its position in PPL by 6.2% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 35,089,490 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,160,760,000 after purchasing an additional 2,050,122 shares during the period. Electron Capital Partners LLC increased its position in PPL by 71.3% in the second quarter. Electron Capital Partners LLC now owns 4,306,007 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $119,061,000 after buying an additional 1,792,200 shares during the period. Finally, State Street Corp lifted its stake in PPL by 5.0% in 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. 76.99% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

PPL Stock Performance

NYSE:PPL opened at $32.26 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.29, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17. The stock has a market capitalization of $23.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.82. PPL Co. has a 1 year low of $25.35 and a 1 year high of $35.15. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $33.12 and a 200-day moving average of $31.23.

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

PPL Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 2nd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 10th will be given a dividend of $0.2575 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 10th. This represents a $1.03 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.19%. PPL’s dividend payout ratio is 91.96%.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider John R. Crockett III sold 9,161 shares of PPL stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $34.35, for a total value of $314,680.35. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 12,434 shares in the company, valued at $427,107.90. This trade represents a 42.42 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.22% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently weighed in on the stock. BMO Capital Markets assumed coverage on shares of PPL in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $36.00 price objective on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on PPL from $35.00 to $37.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, September 16th. Bank of America lifted their target price on PPL from $34.00 to $35.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Barclays raised PPL from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reduced 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. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $34.09.

PPL 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.