PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL) Receives $35.50 Consensus PT from Analysts

Shares of PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL) have earned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the ten research firms that are covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $35.50.

Several analysts recently weighed in on PPL shares. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of PPL from $30.00 to $34.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on PPL from $31.00 to $33.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on PPL in a research report on Thursday, September 19th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $38.00 target price on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on PPL from $35.00 to $37.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. initiated coverage on PPL in a report on Friday, October 25th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $37.00 price target on the stock.

Institutional Trading of PPL

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. lifted its stake in PPL by 1.7% in the 3rd quarter. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. now owns 17,696 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $585,000 after acquiring an additional 301 shares in the last quarter. Leelyn Smith LLC grew its position in PPL by 0.4% during the second quarter. Leelyn Smith LLC now owns 79,887 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,209,000 after purchasing an additional 331 shares in the last quarter. Cobblestone Capital Advisors LLC NY increased its stake in PPL by 2.4% in the 3rd quarter. Cobblestone Capital Advisors LLC NY now owns 14,848 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $491,000 after buying an additional 348 shares during the period. TFC Financial Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of PPL by 15.7% during the 2nd quarter. TFC Financial Management Inc. now owns 2,611 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $72,000 after buying an additional 355 shares during the period. Finally, Centennial Wealth Advisory LLC grew its holdings in shares of PPL by 3.4% during the 2nd quarter. Centennial Wealth Advisory LLC now owns 11,250 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $311,000 after acquiring an additional 366 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.99% of the company’s stock.

PPL Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:PPL opened at $34.45 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $25.42 billion, a PE ratio of 30.76, a P/E/G ratio of 3.00 and a beta of 0.81. PPL has a fifty-two week low of $25.35 and a fifty-two week high of $35.00. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $32.75 and a 200 day simple moving average of $30.65. The company has a quick ratio of 1.07, a current ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17.

PPL (NYSE:PPL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, November 1st. The utilities provider reported $0.42 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.42. The business had revenue of $2.07 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.10 billion. PPL had a return on equity of 9.20% and a net margin of 9.95%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 1.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.43 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that PPL will post 1.72 EPS for the current year.

PPL Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 2nd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 10th will be given a dividend of $0.2575 per share. This represents a $1.03 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.99%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 10th. PPL’s payout ratio is 91.97%.

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.