Bfsg LLC Lowers Stake in PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL)

Bfsg LLC lowered its stake in shares of PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL) by 2.0% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 18,264 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 376 shares during the quarter. Bfsg LLC’s holdings in PPL were worth $593,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its position in PPL by 12.0% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 34,758,947 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,115,824,000 after purchasing an additional 3,731,412 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its position in PPL by 6.2% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 35,089,490 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,160,760,000 after purchasing an additional 2,050,122 shares during the period. State Street Corp raised its position in PPL by 5.0% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 36,459,099 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,215,363,000 after purchasing an additional 1,720,941 shares during the period. National Bank of Canada FI raised its position in PPL by 322.6% in the 3rd quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 1,223,128 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $40,461,000 after purchasing an additional 933,723 shares during the period. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its position in PPL by 5,390.2% in the 3rd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 563,015 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $18,625,000 after purchasing an additional 552,760 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.99% of the company’s stock.

PPL Trading Up 1.3 %

Shares of PPL opened at $34.17 on Wednesday. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $32.89 and its 200-day moving average price is $32.66. The firm has a market capitalization of $25.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.24, a PEG ratio of 2.73 and a beta of 0.83. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13. PPL Co. has a 1-year low of $25.87 and a 1-year high of $35.15.

PPL (NYSE:PPL) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The utilities provider reported $0.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.37 by ($0.03). PPL had a net margin of 10.49% and a return on equity of 8.88%. The business had revenue of $2.21 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.09 billion. Sell-side analysts anticipate that PPL Co. will post 1.83 EPS for the current year.

PPL Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Monday, March 10th will be given a dividend of $0.2725 per share. This is a boost from PPL’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.26. This represents a $1.09 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.19%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 10th. PPL’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 85.12%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

PPL has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Barclays decreased their target price on shares of PPL from $34.00 to $33.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. BMO Capital Markets assumed coverage on shares of PPL in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $36.00 target price on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price target on shares of PPL from $39.00 to $38.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. Citigroup raised their price target on shares of PPL from $31.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Bank of America raised their price target on shares of PPL from $34.00 to $35.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $34.00.

Insider Activity at PPL

In other PPL news, insider John R. Crockett III sold 9,161 shares of PPL stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $34.35, for a total value of $314,680.35. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 12,434 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $427,107.90. The trade was a 42.42 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, SVP Tadd J. Henninger sold 1,424 shares of PPL stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $33.48, for a total transaction of $47,675.52. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 11,259 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $376,951.32. This trade represents a 11.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 19,794 shares of company stock valued at $661,338 in the last three months. Company 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.