PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL) Receives $36.90 Average PT from Analysts

PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL - Get Free Report) has received a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" from the ten brokerages that are covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 12-month target price among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $36.90.

Several analysts have issued reports on the stock. Guggenheim boosted their target price on shares of PPL from $38.00 to $40.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Citigroup raised PPL from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, March 10th. Wall Street Zen raised PPL from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, May 9th. Barclays lifted their target price on PPL from $33.00 to $36.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Finally, UBS Group increased their price target on shares of PPL from $35.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, March 21st.

Insider Transactions at PPL

In other PPL news, COO David J. Bonenberger sold 1,767 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 45,485 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,591,065.30. This represents a 3.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.28% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of PPL

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. raised its holdings in PPL by 141.0% in the 1st quarter. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. now owns 723 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 423 shares during the period. Summit Securities Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of PPL in the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. increased its stake in shares of PPL by 94.3% in the first quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 818 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 397 shares during the period. Ancora Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of PPL by 8,350.0% during the 1st quarter. Ancora Advisors LLC now owns 845 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 835 shares during the last quarter. Finally, TruNorth Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of PPL during the 1st quarter worth about $32,000. 76.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

PPL Trading Down 0.4%

Shares of NYSE:PPL traded down $0.15 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $34.03. The company had a trading volume of 3,536,631 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,361,703. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $35.14 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $34.17. The firm has a market cap of $25.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 0.65. PPL 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 quick ratio of 0.71 and a current ratio of 0.86.

PPL (NYSE:PPL - Get Free Report) last announced its 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 10.49% and a return on equity of 8.88%. The company had revenue of $2.50 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.15 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.54 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 8.7% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that PPL will post 1.83 earnings per share for the current year.

PPL Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 1st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 10th will be paid a $0.2725 dividend. This represents a $1.09 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.20%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 10th. PPL's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 80.74%.

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.