Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp Has $11.58 Million Stock Holdings in PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL)

Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp decreased its holdings in shares of PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL) by 19.8% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 356,753 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 88,174 shares during the quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp’s holdings in PPL were worth $11,580,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Boston Partners raised its holdings in PPL by 8,266.9% during the fourth quarter. Boston Partners now owns 9,518,141 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $309,060,000 after buying an additional 9,404,382 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in shares of PPL in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $147,480,000. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its holdings 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 last quarter. Reaves W H & Co. Inc. boosted its position in PPL by 182.2% during the fourth quarter. Reaves W H & Co. Inc. now owns 3,951,116 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $128,254,000 after purchasing an additional 2,551,070 shares during the period. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP grew its holdings in PPL by 6.2% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 35,089,490 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,160,760,000 after purchasing an additional 2,050,122 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 76.99% of the company’s stock.

PPL Trading Up 2.1 %

Shares of PPL stock opened at $35.70 on Friday. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $34.23 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $33.29. The firm has a market capitalization of $26.36 billion, a PE ratio of 29.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 0.76. PPL Co. has a 52-week low of $25.93 and a 52-week high of $35.97. 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 (NYSE:PPL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The utilities provider reported $0.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.37 by ($0.03). The business had revenue of $2.21 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.09 billion. PPL had a return on equity of 8.88% and a net margin of 10.49%. On average, analysts expect that PPL Co. will post 1.83 EPS for the current year.

PPL Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Monday, March 10th will be paid a $0.2725 dividend. This is a positive change from PPL’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.26. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 10th. This represents a $1.09 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.05%. PPL’s payout ratio is currently 90.08%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price objective on shares of PPL from $39.00 to $38.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. 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 target for the company. Barclays lifted their price objective on PPL from $33.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on PPL from $35.00 to $38.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, March 20th. Finally, Citigroup raised PPL from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, March 10th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $35.27.

Insider Buying and Selling at PPL

In other news, SVP Tadd J. Henninger sold 1,424 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the senior vice president now owns 11,259 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $376,951.32. This trade represents a 11.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Christine M. Martin sold 1,146 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $34.78, for a total value of $39,857.88. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 37,167 shares in the company, valued at $1,292,668.26. The trade was a 2.99 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 5,140 shares of company stock worth $173,005 over the last three months. Company 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.