Envestnet Asset Management Inc. Purchases 250,564 Shares of PPL Corporation (NYSE:PPL)

Envestnet Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in PPL Corporation (NYSE:PPL - Free Report) by 9.2% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 2,975,310 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 250,564 shares during the quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. owned 0.40% of PPL worth $107,438,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Summit Securities Group LLC bought a new stake in PPL in the fourth quarter worth approximately $26,000. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of PPL by 141.0% during the 1st quarter. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. now owns 723 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 423 shares during the period. Lee Danner & Bass Inc. bought a new stake in shares of PPL during the 4th quarter worth $32,000. HM Payson & Co. boosted its holdings in shares of PPL by 1,057.6% during the 1st quarter. HM Payson & Co. now owns 984 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 899 shares during the period. Finally, Larson Financial Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of PPL by 84.5% during the 4th 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 during the period. 76.99% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently issued reports on PPL. Wall Street Zen raised shares of PPL from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, May 9th. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of PPL from $35.00 to $36.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, March 21st. Barclays raised shares of PPL from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Monday, July 7th. 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 report on Wednesday, June 18th. Finally, Guggenheim increased 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. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, PPL has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $36.70.

PPL Price Performance

PPL stock traded down $0.05 during trading on Friday, hitting $34.28. 2,934,401 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,933,350. PPL Corporation has a one year low of $27.93 and a one year high of $36.70. The stock has a market cap of $25.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.39, a P/E/G ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 0.64. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $34.28 and a 200 day simple moving average of $34.24. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11.

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

PPL Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 1st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 10th were paid a $0.2725 dividend. This represents a $1.09 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.18%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, June 10th. PPL's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 80.74%.

Insider Activity

In other news, COO David J. Bonenberger sold 1,767 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $34.98, for a total value of $61,809.66. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 45,485 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,591,065.30. This trade represents a 3.74% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Company 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.