PPL (NYSE:PPL) Stock Rating Upgraded by Scotiabank

Key Points

• Scotiabank upgraded PPL to “strong buy,” while analysts overall maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus with an average price target of $40.21.
• PPL reported quarterly earnings of $0.33 per share, narrowly missing estimates, while revenue reached $2.11 billion and increased 4.2% year over year.
• Institutional investors own approximately 76.99% of PPL’s shares, with several funds increasing their positions during the second quarter.

PPL (NYSE:PPL - Get Free Report) was upgraded by investment analysts at Scotiabank to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report issued on Tuesday, Zacks reports.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently commented on the company. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on PPL from $43.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday. Weiss Ratings lowered PPL from a "buy (b)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research note on Monday. Evercore set a $42.00 target price on PPL in a research report on Monday, August 17th. Bank of America reduced their price target on shares of PPL from $42.00 to $39.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, July 20th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets decreased their price target on shares of PPL from $40.00 to $38.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, August 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $40.21.

PPL Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:PPL opened at $32.56 on Tuesday. PPL has a 1 year low of $31.56 and a 1 year high of $40.10. The stock has a market capitalization of $24.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.14 and a beta of 0.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32, a current ratio of 0.91 and a quick ratio of 0.73. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $34.63 and its 200 day simple moving average is $36.10.

PPL (NYSE:PPL - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Friday, August 7th. The utilities provider reported $0.33 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.34 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $2.11 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.19 billion. PPL had a return on equity of 9.33% and a net margin of 13.47%.The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.32 earnings per share. PPL has set its FY 2026 guidance at 1.900-1.980 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that PPL will post 1.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at PPL

In other news, CFO Ashley F. Johnson sold 34,993 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $22.08, for a total transaction of $772,645.44. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 561,482 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,397,522.56. The trade was a 5.87% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Kristen Robinson sold 37,107 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $25.05, for a total value of $929,530.35. Following the sale, the director owned 222,897 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,583,569.85. This trade represents a 14.27% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 0.34% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On PPL

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Rakuten Investment Management Inc. bought a new position in PPL during the 2nd quarter worth $4,521,000. EP Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in PPL during the 2nd quarter worth about $1,893,000. Hsbc Holdings PLC grew its position in shares of PPL by 10.4% in the 2nd quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 1,335,060 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $48,651,000 after buying an additional 126,179 shares during the last quarter. Engineers Gate Manager LP grew its position in shares of PPL by 104.3% in the 2nd quarter. Engineers Gate Manager LP now owns 618,448 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $22,481,000 after buying an additional 315,788 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its position in shares of PPL by 7.1% in the 2nd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 3,157,814 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $114,787,000 after buying an additional 208,820 shares during the last quarter. 76.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About PPL

PPL Corporation NYSE: PPL is an energy holding company that owns and operates regulated electric and natural gas utilities in the United States. Its businesses deliver electricity and natural gas to residential, commercial, and industrial customers, while also operating and maintaining the infrastructure needed to support reliable energy service.

PPL's principal subsidiaries include PPL Electric Utilities, which serves customers in eastern and central Pennsylvania; Louisville Gas and Electric Company and Kentucky Utilities, which provide electric and natural gas service in Kentucky; and Rhode Island Energy, which supplies electricity and natural gas to customers across Rhode Island.

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