PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL) Shares Acquired by Atria Investments Inc

Atria Investments Inc increased its holdings in PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL) by 7.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 72,280 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 4,887 shares during the quarter. Atria Investments Inc’s holdings in PPL were worth $2,346,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Assetmark Inc. increased its holdings in shares of PPL by 9.3% in the 4th quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 32,853 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,066,000 after acquiring an additional 2,809 shares during the period. Bahl & Gaynor Inc. increased its stake in PPL by 16.2% in the 4th quarter. Bahl & Gaynor Inc. now owns 3,936,992 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $127,795,000 after buying an additional 550,302 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in PPL by 2.8% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,899,768 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $159,046,000 after buying an additional 132,881 shares during the period. Reaves W H & Co. Inc. increased its stake in PPL by 182.2% in the 4th quarter. Reaves W H & Co. Inc. now owns 3,951,116 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $128,254,000 after buying an additional 2,551,070 shares during the period. Finally, Schechter Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new position in PPL in the 4th quarter valued at $577,000. 76.99% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

PPL Price Performance

PPL stock opened at $34.07 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $25.15 billion, a PE ratio of 28.15, a P/E/G 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. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $33.49 and its 200 day simple moving average is $33.01. PPL Co. has a 52 week low of $25.93 and a 52 week high of $35.91.

PPL (NYSE:PPL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The utilities provider reported $0.34 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 company had revenue of $2.21 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.09 billion. On average, equities research analysts predict that PPL Co. will post 1.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

PPL Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.20%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 10th. This is an increase from PPL’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.26. PPL’s dividend payout ratio is 90.08%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other PPL news, insider Christine M. Martin sold 1,146 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $34.78, for a total value of $39,857.88. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 37,167 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,292,668.26. This trade represents a 2.99 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Tadd J. Henninger sold 1,424 shares of the 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 directly owns 11,259 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $376,951.32. This trade represents a 11.23 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 11,779 shares of company stock valued at $386,515. 0.22% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

PPL has been the topic of several recent research reports. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price objective on shares of PPL from $39.00 to $38.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. BMO Capital Markets initiated coverage on shares of PPL in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $36.00 price objective on the stock. Citigroup boosted their price objective 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. Finally, 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 note on Tuesday, February 25th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $34.70.

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.