Ethos Financial Group LLC Acquires Shares of 48,931 PPL Corporation $PPL

Key Points

• Ethos Financial Group LLC has invested approximately $1.77 million in PPL Corporation by acquiring 48,931 shares during Q1, according to its recent SEC filing.
• PPL Corporation's stock is currently trading at $36.53, with analysts projecting it will post $1.83 EPS for the current fiscal year, despite missing the last EPS estimate of $0.37.
• Institutional investors hold 76.99% of PPL's stock, reflecting significant confidence in the company's future performance, while several analysts have given the stock a mixed range of ratings.

Ethos Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in PPL Corporation (NYSE:PPL - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 48,931 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $1,767,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of PPL. Renaissance Technologies LLC boosted its stake in PPL by 613.8% in the fourth quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 122,774 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $3,985,000 after acquiring an additional 105,574 shares during the period. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. increased its stake in shares of PPL by 6.4% in the fourth quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 46,606 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,513,000 after purchasing an additional 2,805 shares during the period. Townsquare Capital LLC raised its holdings in shares of PPL by 9.4% during the fourth quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC now owns 16,168 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $525,000 after buying an additional 1,391 shares during the last quarter. CreativeOne Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of PPL during the fourth quarter worth approximately $328,000. Finally, Guggenheim Capital LLC boosted its position in shares of PPL by 2.0% during the fourth quarter. Guggenheim Capital LLC now owns 137,711 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $4,470,000 after buying an additional 2,643 shares during the period. 76.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

PPL Price Performance

PPL stock traded up $0.3250 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $37.0550. The company's stock had a trading volume of 8,128,059 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,669,822. The company has a quick ratio of 0.49, a current ratio of 0.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.07. The stock has a market capitalization of $27.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.65, a P/E/G ratio of 2.60 and a beta of 0.64. PPL Corporation has a twelve month low of $31.22 and a twelve month high of $37.38. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $35.09 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $34.91.

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have commented on PPL shares. Barclays raised shares of PPL from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Monday, July 7th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on shares of PPL from $38.00 to $37.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, June 18th. Guggenheim boosted their target price on PPL from $38.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised PPL from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, May 9th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, PPL currently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $36.70.

Insider Buying and Selling at PPL

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

PPL 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.