HighPoint Advisor Group LLC Acquires 880 Shares of PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL)

HighPoint Advisor Group LLC boosted its holdings in PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL) by 8.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 11,038 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 880 shares during the period. HighPoint Advisor Group LLC’s holdings in PPL were worth $381,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Summit Securities Group LLC bought a new position in PPL during the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Kentucky Trust Co purchased a new position in PPL in the fourth quarter valued at about $32,000. Lee Danner & Bass Inc. bought a new position in shares of PPL during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton increased its stake in shares of PPL by 1,092.2% during the 4th quarter. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton now owns 1,216 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 1,114 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Larson Financial Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of PPL by 84.5% in the 4th quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 1,264 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 579 shares during the period. 76.99% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

PPL Stock Performance

NYSE PPL opened at $36.18 on Thursday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $34.41 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $33.37. The stock has a market capitalization of $26.71 billion, a PE ratio of 29.90, a P/E/G ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 0.76. 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 Co. has a 1 year low of $25.93 and a 1 year high of $36.42.

PPL (NYSE:PPL) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 return on equity of 8.88% and a net margin of 10.49%. The business had revenue of $2.21 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.09 billion. Analysts predict that PPL Co. will post 1.83 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

PPL Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th were issued a dividend of $0.2725 per share. This is a positive change from PPL’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.26. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 10th. This represents a $1.09 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.01%. PPL’s payout ratio is presently 90.08%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have weighed in on PPL. Citigroup raised PPL from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, March 10th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on PPL from $35.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, March 20th. BMO Capital Markets assumed coverage on shares of PPL in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $36.00 price objective on the stock. Barclays increased their target price on shares of PPL from $33.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. Finally, UBS Group upped their price target on shares of PPL from $35.00 to $36.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, March 21st. Four 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’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $35.27.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, COO David J. Bonenberger sold 981 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $33.48, for a total value of $32,843.88. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 45,414 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,520,460.72. The trade was a 2.11 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, SVP Tadd J. Henninger sold 1,424 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $33.48, for a total value of $47,675.52. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 11,259 shares in the company, valued at $376,951.32. The trade was a 11.23 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 5,140 shares of company stock worth $173,005. Insiders own 0.22% 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.