PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL) Shares Acquired by iA Global Asset Management Inc.

iA Global Asset Management Inc. increased its position in PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL) by 14.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 35,146 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 4,454 shares during the period. iA Global Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in PPL were worth $1,141,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Global Retirement Partners LLC raised its position in shares of PPL by 2.4% in the fourth quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 12,530 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $407,000 after buying an additional 299 shares during the last quarter. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. raised its position in shares of PPL by 1.7% in the third quarter. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. now owns 17,696 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $585,000 after buying an additional 301 shares during the last quarter. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of PPL by 4.7% in the fourth quarter. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 6,797 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $221,000 after buying an additional 305 shares during the last quarter. Arkfeld Wealth Strategies L.L.C. raised its position in shares of PPL by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Arkfeld Wealth Strategies L.L.C. now owns 78,296 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,480,000 after buying an additional 313 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Choreo LLC raised its position in shares of PPL by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. Choreo LLC now owns 37,622 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,230,000 after buying an additional 322 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.99% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

PPL has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Citigroup raised shares of PPL from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, March 10th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of PPL from $35.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday. Barclays upped their price target 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. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of PPL from $35.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday. Finally, BMO Capital Markets initiated coverage on shares of PPL in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $36.00 price target for the company. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, PPL has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $35.27.

PPL Price Performance

PPL stock opened at $34.78 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $25.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.74, a PEG ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 0.76. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $33.99 and a 200-day moving average of $33.19. The company has a quick ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13. PPL Co. has a 52-week low of $25.93 and a 52-week high of $35.91.

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

PPL Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be paid a $0.2725 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 10th. This is an increase from PPL’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.26. This represents a $1.09 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.13%. PPL’s dividend payout ratio is 90.08%.

Insider Activity

In other PPL news, insider John R. Crockett III sold 1,589 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, January 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $33.12, for a total transaction of $52,627.68. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 10,845 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $359,186.40. This trade represents a 12.78 % decrease in their position. The sale 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 firm’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 ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 5,140 shares of company stock worth $173,005. 0.22% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.