Artemis Investment Management LLP Raises Stake in PPL Corporation (NYSE:PPL)

Artemis Investment Management LLP raised its holdings in PPL Corporation (NYSE:PPL - Free Report) by 33.8% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 645,743 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 163,051 shares during the quarter. Artemis Investment Management LLP owned about 0.09% of PPL worth $23,318,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. increased its position in PPL by 141.0% in the 1st quarter. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. now owns 723 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 423 shares during the period. Summit Securities Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of PPL in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Lee Danner & Bass Inc. purchased a new position in shares of PPL in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Larson Financial Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of PPL by 84.5% in the fourth quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 1,264 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $41,000 after purchasing an additional 579 shares during the period. Finally, AdvisorNet Financial Inc raised its stake in shares of PPL by 121.4% during the first quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc now owns 1,581 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $57,000 after purchasing an additional 867 shares during the last quarter. 76.99% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

PPL Price Performance

PPL stock opened at $33.64 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $34.78 and a 200-day moving average of $34.12. The company has a market cap of $24.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.92, a PEG ratio of 2.47 and a beta of 0.65. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11. PPL Corporation has a 12-month low of $27.24 and a 12-month high of $36.70.

PPL (NYSE:PPL - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The utilities provider reported $0.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.53 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $2.50 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.15 billion. PPL had a return on equity of 9.14% and a net margin of 11.49%. PPL's revenue was up 8.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.54 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that PPL Corporation will post 1.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

PPL Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 1st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.2725 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 10th. This represents a $1.09 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.24%. PPL's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 80.74%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently weighed in on PPL. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of PPL from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, May 9th. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on shares of PPL from $38.00 to $37.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, June 18th. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of PPL from $35.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, March 21st. Citigroup upgraded shares of PPL from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, March 10th. Finally, Guggenheim boosted their target price on PPL from $38.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $36.80.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other PPL news, COO David J. Bonenberger sold 1,767 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $34.98, for a total transaction of $61,809.66. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 45,485 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,591,065.30. This represents a 3.74% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 0.28% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

About PPL

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.

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