Bahl & Gaynor Inc. Purchases 35,805 Shares of PPL Corporation $PPL

Key Points

• Bahl & Gaynor Inc. increased its stake in PPL Corporation by 0.9%, owning 3,972,797 shares worth approximately $143.46 million as of the end of the 1st quarter.
• PPL Corporation reported Q2 earnings per share of $0.32, missing estimates by $0.05, while revenue rose to $2.03 billion, exceeding expectations.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.2725 per share, with a current yield of 3.0% and a payout ratio of 81.34%.

Bahl & Gaynor Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of PPL Corporation (NYSE:PPL - Free Report) by 0.9% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,972,797 shares of the utilities provider's stock after acquiring an additional 35,805 shares during the quarter. Bahl & Gaynor Inc. owned 0.54% of PPL worth $143,458,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Harbour Investments Inc. increased its stake in PPL by 16.0% in the 1st quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 2,207 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $80,000 after buying an additional 304 shares during the period. Pinnacle Wealth Management Advisory Group LLC increased its stake in shares of PPL by 2.5% in the first quarter. Pinnacle Wealth Management Advisory Group LLC now owns 12,998 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $469,000 after acquiring an additional 322 shares during the last quarter. Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co. raised its holdings in shares of PPL by 5.0% during the first quarter. Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co. now owns 6,953 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $251,000 after acquiring an additional 329 shares in the last quarter. HighPoint Advisor Group LLC boosted its position in PPL by 3.2% during the first quarter. HighPoint Advisor Group LLC now owns 11,392 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $415,000 after purchasing an additional 354 shares during the last quarter. Finally, HBK Sorce Advisory LLC grew its stake in PPL by 1.2% in the first quarter. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC now owns 30,367 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,097,000 after purchasing an additional 372 shares in the last quarter. 76.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

PPL Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:PPL traded down $0.12 during trading on Thursday, hitting $36.51. 1,208,690 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,594,812. The company has a market capitalization of $27.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 0.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.07, a quick ratio of 0.49 and a current ratio of 0.59. PPL Corporation has a 1-year low of $31.22 and a 1-year high of $37.38. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $35.44 and its 200-day simple moving average is $35.02.

PPL (NYSE:PPL - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The utilities provider reported $0.32 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.37 by ($0.05). The firm had revenue of $2.03 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.99 billion. PPL had a return on equity of 8.81% and a net margin of 11.22%.The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 7.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.38 earnings per share. PPL has set its FY 2025 guidance at 1.750-1.870 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that PPL Corporation will post 1.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

PPL Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, September 10th will be given a $0.2725 dividend. This represents a $1.09 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, September 10th. PPL's dividend payout ratio is 81.34%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on PPL shares. Morgan Stanley reiterated an "overweight" rating on shares of PPL in a report on Thursday, August 21st. Guggenheim raised their price target on shares of PPL from $38.00 to $40.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Barclays raised shares of PPL from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, July 7th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised PPL from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, May 9th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $36.70.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, COO David J. Bonenberger sold 2,165 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $35.86, for a total value of $77,636.90. Following the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 45,560 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,633,781.60. This represents a 4.54% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 0.28% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.