PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL) Shares Purchased by Merit Financial Group LLC

Merit Financial Group LLC lifted its position in PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL - Free Report) by 150.1% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 26,601 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 15,966 shares during the quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC's holdings in PPL were worth $961,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of PPL. Summit Securities Group LLC acquired a new stake in PPL in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Kentucky Trust Co purchased a new position in PPL during the fourth quarter worth approximately $32,000. Lee Danner & Bass Inc. purchased a new position in PPL during the fourth quarter worth approximately $32,000. Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its position in PPL by 84.5% during the fourth quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 1,264 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $41,000 after buying an additional 579 shares in the last quarter. Finally, AdvisorNet Financial Inc raised its position in PPL by 121.4% in the first quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc now owns 1,581 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $57,000 after purchasing an additional 867 shares during the period. 76.99% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have commented on PPL shares. Wall Street Zen upgraded PPL from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, May 9th. Citigroup raised PPL from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, March 10th. UBS Group upped their price objective on PPL from $35.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, March 21st. Barclays boosted their target price on PPL from $33.00 to $36.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on PPL from $35.00 to $38.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $36.90.

PPL Stock Performance

Shares of PPL stock traded down $0.07 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $34.04. 3,221,912 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,952,868. The company has a market cap of $25.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 0.65. The company's 50 day moving average is $35.05 and its two-hundred day moving average is $34.17. PPL Co. has a 1 year low of $27.24 and a 1 year high of $36.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.71.

PPL (NYSE:PPL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The utilities provider reported $0.60 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.53 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $2.50 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.15 billion. PPL had a return on equity of 8.88% and a net margin of 10.49%. The company's revenue was up 8.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.54 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that PPL Co. will post 1.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

PPL Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 1st. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 10th will be issued a $0.2725 dividend. This represents a $1.09 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.20%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 10th. PPL's dividend payout ratio is currently 80.74%.

Insider Buying and Selling

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. Insiders own 0.28% of the company's stock.

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.