Deutsche Bank AG Decreases Stake in PPL Corporation (NYSE:PPL)

Key Points

• Deutsche Bank AG reduced its stake in PPL Corporation by 3.6%, now owning approximately 0.26% of the company valued at $69.97 million.
• PPL Corporation's quarterly earnings report showed a miss in EPS at $0.32, compared to estimates of $0.37, although revenue increased by 7.7% year-over-year to $2.03 billion.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.2725, representing an annualized yield of 3.0% and a dividend payout ratio of 81.34%.

Deutsche Bank AG reduced its stake in PPL Corporation (NYSE:PPL - Free Report) by 3.6% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,937,747 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 73,054 shares during the quarter. Deutsche Bank AG owned about 0.26% of PPL worth $69,972,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. raised its position in shares of PPL by 17.5% in the 1st quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 79,088 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $2,824,000 after purchasing an additional 11,782 shares during the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. raised its position in shares of PPL by 9.2% in the 1st quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 2,975,310 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $107,438,000 after purchasing an additional 250,564 shares during the last quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. raised its position in shares of PPL by 45.0% in the 1st quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 30,603 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,105,000 after purchasing an additional 9,503 shares during the last quarter. Heartland Bank & Trust Co purchased a new position in shares of PPL in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $992,000. Finally, Brown Advisory Inc. raised its position in PPL by 13.7% during the 1st quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. now owns 9,748 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $352,000 after buying an additional 1,175 shares during the last quarter. 76.99% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at PPL

In related news, COO David J. Bonenberger sold 2,165 shares of PPL stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $35.86, for a total value of $77,636.90. Following the sale, the chief operating officer owned 45,560 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,633,781.60. This trade represents a 4.54% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.22% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. Barclays raised shares of PPL from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, July 7th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of PPL from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, May 9th. Guggenheim raised their price target on shares of PPL from $38.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of PPL from $38.00 to $37.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, June 18th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $36.70.

PPL Price Performance

Shares of NYSE PPL opened at $36.29 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $26.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.09, a PEG ratio of 2.61 and a beta of 0.64. PPL Corporation has a 12 month low of $30.44 and a 12 month high of $36.99. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $34.76 and its 200-day simple moving average is $34.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.07, a current ratio of 0.59 and a quick ratio of 0.49.

PPL (NYSE:PPL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The utilities provider reported $0.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.37 by ($0.05). PPL had a net margin of 11.22% and a return on equity of 8.81%. The company had revenue of $2.03 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.99 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.38 EPS. PPL's revenue was up 7.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts expect that PPL Corporation will post 1.83 EPS for the current year.

PPL Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 1st. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 10th were paid a $0.2725 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, June 10th. This represents a $1.09 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.0%. PPL's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 81.34%.

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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