PPL (NYSE:PPL) Upgraded at BTIG Research

Key Points

• PPL (NYSE:PPL) has been upgraded to a "strong-buy" rating by analysts at BTIG Research, indicating increasing positive sentiment towards the stock.
• Other analysts, including Morgan Stanley and BMO Capital Markets, have also raised their price targets for PPL, with an average target of $40.18.
• PPL recently reported earnings that missed consensus estimates, posting $0.32 EPS compared to a $0.37 forecast, but showed a 7.7% increase in revenue year-over-year.

PPL (NYSE:PPL - Get Free Report) was upgraded by analysts at BTIG Research to a "strong-buy" rating in a note issued to investors on Wednesday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other research analysts have also issued reports on the stock. Morgan Stanley restated an "overweight" rating and set a $41.00 price target on shares of PPL in a research note on Wednesday. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on PPL from $40.00 to $41.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "buy (b)" rating on shares of PPL in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Wall Street Zen downgraded PPL from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Friday, September 5th. Finally, UBS Group increased their price objective on PPL from $37.00 to $39.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, October 10th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, PPL currently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $40.18.

PPL Trading Up 0.6%

Shares of NYSE:PPL opened at $37.75 on Wednesday. The business's 50-day moving average is $36.63 and its 200 day moving average is $35.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.07, a current ratio of 0.59 and a quick ratio of 0.49. PPL has a 1 year low of $31.22 and a 1 year high of $38.26. The firm has a market capitalization of $27.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.17, a P/E/G ratio of 2.82 and a beta of 0.66.

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, COO David J. Bonenberger sold 2,165 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $35.86, for a total transaction of $77,636.90. Following the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 45,560 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,633,781.60. This trade represents a 4.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.28% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On PPL

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Boston Partners increased its holdings in shares of PPL by 37.2% during the 1st quarter. Boston Partners now owns 13,062,423 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $471,756,000 after purchasing an additional 3,544,282 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. grew its position in PPL by 1,418.1% during the first quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 2,909,371 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $105,057,000 after buying an additional 2,717,726 shares during the period. Nuveen LLC purchased a new position in PPL in the first quarter valued at $60,020,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its holdings in PPL by 42.9% in the first quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 4,779,155 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $172,575,000 after buying an additional 1,434,778 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ceredex Value Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of PPL in the first quarter worth about $29,617,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.99% 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.

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