PPL (NYSE:PPL) Sets New 52-Week High – Time to Buy?

PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL) shares hit a new 52-week high during trading on Saturday . The stock traded as high as $35.97 and last traded at $35.70, with a volume of 10031838 shares. The stock had previously closed at $34.98.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. BMO Capital Markets began coverage on PPL in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $36.00 price target on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their target price on shares of PPL from $39.00 to $38.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. Morgan Stanley raised 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, March 20th. Citigroup raised shares of PPL from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, March 10th. Finally, Barclays raised their target price on shares of PPL from $33.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $35.27.

PPL Stock Up 2.1 %

The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $34.23 and its 200 day simple moving average is $33.30. The company 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. 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 (NYSE:PPL) last released its quarterly earnings results 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 net margin of 10.49% and a return on equity of 8.88%. The firm had revenue of $2.21 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.09 billion. As a group, analysts forecast that PPL Co. will post 1.83 EPS for the current year.

PPL Increases Dividend

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider John R. Crockett III sold 1,589 shares of the business’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 transaction, the insider now directly owns 10,845 shares in the company, valued at $359,186.40. The trade was a 12.78 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, COO David J. Bonenberger sold 981 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $33.48, for a total value of $32,843.88. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now 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. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 5,140 shares of company stock valued at $173,005. Corporate insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Cerity Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of PPL by 43.1% in the 3rd quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 36,788 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,217,000 after buying an additional 11,089 shares in the last quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. lifted its stake in PPL by 5.0% in the third quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 21,931 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $725,000 after acquiring an additional 1,052 shares during the last quarter. Glenmede Trust Co. NA grew its position in PPL by 109.3% in the third quarter. Glenmede Trust Co. NA now owns 121,046 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $4,004,000 after acquiring an additional 63,218 shares in the last quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank increased its stake in shares of PPL by 5.6% during the 3rd quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 162,050 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $5,361,000 after purchasing an additional 8,534 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Public Sector Pension Investment Board raised its holdings in shares of PPL by 3.0% during the 3rd quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 128,853 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $4,262,000 after purchasing an additional 3,700 shares in the last quarter. 76.99% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.