Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. Sells 10,982 Shares of PPL Corporation (NYSE:PPL)

Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. decreased its holdings in PPL Corporation (NYSE:PPL - Free Report) by 14.9% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 62,837 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 10,982 shares during the period. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc.'s holdings in PPL were worth $2,269,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in PPL by 2.9% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 17,677,941 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $572,300,000 after buying an additional 500,058 shares during the period. Cbre Investment Management Listed Real Assets LLC increased its stake in PPL by 6.6% during the fourth quarter. Cbre Investment Management Listed Real Assets LLC now owns 1,997,610 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $64,842,000 after acquiring an additional 124,275 shares during the period. Aviso Wealth Management acquired a new position in PPL in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $256,000. Boston Partners lifted its position in shares of PPL by 8,266.9% in the 4th quarter. Boston Partners now owns 9,518,141 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $309,060,000 after acquiring an additional 9,404,382 shares during the period. Finally, Wealth High Governance Capital Ltda bought a new stake in PPL in the fourth quarter valued at about $3,019,000. 76.99% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

PPL Stock Up 0.4%

PPL traded up $0.14 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $33.64. 4,750,166 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,961,645. The stock 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. PPL Corporation has a 1-year low of $27.24 and a 1-year high of $36.70. The stock's 50-day moving average is $34.83 and its two-hundred day moving average is $34.11. The company has a quick ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11.

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

PPL Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 1st. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 10th will be given 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 presently 80.74%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on PPL shares. UBS Group lifted their price objective on PPL from $35.00 to $36.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, March 21st. Guggenheim raised their price objective on shares of PPL from $38.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective 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. Wall Street Zen upgraded PPL from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, May 9th. Finally, Citigroup raised PPL from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Monday, March 10th. Three investment 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, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $36.80.

Insider Buying and Selling at PPL

In other PPL news, COO David J. Bonenberger sold 1,767 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $34.98, for a total value of $61,809.66. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 45,485 shares in the company, valued at $1,591,065.30. This trade represents a 3.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.28% of the company's stock.

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.