Pictet Asset Management Holding SA Sells 23,117 Shares of PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL)

Pictet Asset Management Holding SA cut its position in PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL) by 7.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 306,316 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 23,117 shares during the quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA’s holdings in PPL were worth $9,943,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in PPL. Kentucky Trust Co bought a new stake in shares of PPL in the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. Lee Danner & Bass Inc. acquired a new position in shares of PPL in the fourth quarter worth approximately $32,000. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton boosted its holdings in PPL by 1,092.2% in the fourth quarter. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton now owns 1,216 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $39,000 after acquiring an additional 1,114 shares during the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC increased its position in PPL by 84.5% during the 4th quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 1,264 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $41,000 after purchasing an additional 579 shares during the period. Finally, Newton One Investments LLC bought a new position in PPL during the 4th quarter worth approximately $49,000. 76.99% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

PPL Stock Performance

Shares of PPL stock opened at $36.18 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $26.71 billion, a PE ratio of 29.90, 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 Co. has a 52 week low of $25.93 and a 52 week high of $36.42. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $34.41 and a 200-day moving average price of $33.37.

PPL (NYSE:PPL) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 company had revenue of $2.21 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.09 billion. PPL had a net margin of 10.49% and a return on equity of 8.88%. Equities analysts anticipate that PPL Co. will post 1.83 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

PPL Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 10th were given a $0.2725 dividend. This represents a $1.09 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.01%. This is an increase from PPL’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.26. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 10th. PPL’s dividend payout ratio is presently 90.08%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on PPL shares. Barclays lifted their price objective on PPL from $33.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on PPL from $35.00 to $38.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. BMO Capital Markets assumed coverage on shares of PPL in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $36.00 price objective for the company. 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 research report on Tuesday, December 17th. Finally, Citigroup upgraded shares of PPL from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, March 10th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, PPL currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $35.27.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Christine M. Martin sold 1,146 shares of PPL stock in a transaction on Friday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $34.78, for a total transaction of $39,857.88. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 37,167 shares in the company, valued at approximately $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 SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, 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 value of $52,627.68. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 10,845 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $359,186.40. This represents a 12.78 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 5,140 shares of company stock valued at $173,005 in the last 90 days. 0.22% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.