PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL) Stock Holdings Lifted by Portfolio Design Labs LLC

Portfolio Design Labs LLC raised its stake in PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL) by 47.3% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 102,987 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 33,088 shares during the period. Portfolio Design Labs LLC’s holdings in PPL were worth $3,343,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Fortitude Family Office LLC increased its holdings in shares of PPL by 195.5% in the third quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 780 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 516 shares in the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new position in shares of PPL in the third quarter valued at $34,000. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton increased its holdings in shares of PPL by 1,092.2% in the fourth quarter. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton now owns 1,216 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 1,114 shares in the last quarter. Covestor Ltd raised its stake in PPL by 139.2% during the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 1,512 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $50,000 after purchasing an additional 880 shares during the period. Finally, Newton One Investments LLC acquired a new stake in PPL during the 4th quarter valued at $49,000. Institutional investors own 76.99% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have issued reports on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. assumed coverage on shares of PPL in a research note on Friday, October 25th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $37.00 target price on the stock. Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of PPL from $31.00 to $36.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of PPL from $34.00 to $35.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Barclays cut 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 note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, BMO Capital Markets assumed coverage on shares of PPL in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $36.00 target price on the stock. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $34.00.

PPL Trading Up 0.9 %

PPL stock opened at $34.53 on Wednesday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $32.83 and its 200-day simple moving average is $32.48. 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 Co. has a 12 month low of $25.60 and a 12 month high of $35.15. The stock has a market cap of $25.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.83, a P/E/G ratio of 2.75 and a beta of 0.83.

PPL Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 2nd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 10th were issued a dividend of $0.2575 per share. This represents a $1.03 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.98%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, December 10th. PPL’s dividend payout ratio is currently 91.97%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other PPL news, SVP Tadd J. Henninger sold 1,424 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 28th. The shares were 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 owns 11,259 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $376,951.32. The trade was a 11.23 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, COO David J. Bonenberger sold 981 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $33.48, for a total transaction of $32,843.88. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 45,414 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,520,460.72. This represents a 2.11 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 19,794 shares of company stock worth $661,338. Corporate insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

PPL Company 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.