PPL (NYSE:PPL) Stock Crosses Above Two Hundred Day Moving Average – Here’s What Happened

PPL Corporation (NYSE:PPL) passed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Thursday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of $36.08 and traded as high as $37.07. PPL shares last traded at $36.2920, with a volume of 9,384,026 shares trading hands.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

PPL has been the topic of several recent research reports. Morgan Stanley restated an “overweight” rating on shares of PPL in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. BTIG Research raised PPL to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 22nd. Evercore ISI initiated coverage on shares of PPL in a report on Monday, October 6th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $43.00 target price on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of PPL from $45.00 to $41.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 20th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on shares of PPL from $43.00 to $40.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, December 11th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $40.50.

PPL Price Performance

The stock has a fifty day moving average of $35.30 and a 200-day moving average of $36.08. The company has a quick ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18. The stock has a market capitalization of $26.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.52, a P/E/G ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 0.70.

PPL (NYSE:PPL) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 5th. The utilities provider reported $0.48 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.46 by $0.02. PPL had a net margin of 12.16% and a return on equity of 9.08%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.42 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 8.4% compared to the same quarter last year. PPL has set its FY 2025 guidance at 1.780-1.840 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that PPL Corporation will post 1.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

PPL Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 2nd. Investors of record on Wednesday, December 10th were paid a $0.2725 dividend. This represents a $1.09 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, December 10th. PPL’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 73.65%.

Institutional Trading of PPL

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. J.Safra Asset Management Corp purchased a new stake in shares of PPL in the third quarter valued at about $28,000. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates acquired a new position in shares of PPL during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $30,000. Sound Income Strategies LLC lifted its stake in PPL by 322.5% in the 3rd quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 959 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 732 shares in the last quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. lifted its stake in PPL by 293.8% in the 4th quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 1,071 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $37,000 after buying an additional 799 shares in the last quarter. Finally, MTM Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in PPL during the 2nd quarter valued at $44,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.99% of the company’s stock.

PPL Company Profile

PPL Corporation is an energy company that owns and operates electric transmission and distribution infrastructure and provides related customer services. The company’s core business centers on delivering electricity to residential, commercial and industrial customers through regulated utility operations, maintaining grid reliability, responding to outages and managing customer billing and account services.

PPL’s activities include construction and maintenance of distribution and transmission lines, meter and grid management, and programs to support energy efficiency and the interconnection of distributed resources.