Foster Victor Wealth Advisors LLC Raises Stake in PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL)

Foster Victor Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL) by 4.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 203,755 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 8,467 shares during the quarter. Foster Victor Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in PPL were worth $6,775,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. boosted its holdings in PPL by 1.7% during the third quarter. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. now owns 17,696 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $585,000 after buying an additional 301 shares in the last quarter. Arkfeld Wealth Strategies L.L.C. boosted its stake in shares of PPL by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Arkfeld Wealth Strategies L.L.C. now owns 78,296 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,480,000 after acquiring an additional 313 shares in the last quarter. Cobblestone Capital Advisors LLC NY grew its holdings in shares of PPL by 2.4% in the 3rd quarter. Cobblestone Capital Advisors LLC NY now owns 14,848 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $491,000 after acquiring an additional 348 shares during the period. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC increased its stake in PPL by 3.1% in the 3rd quarter. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC now owns 12,360 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $409,000 after purchasing an additional 370 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Exchange Traded Concepts LLC raised its holdings in PPL by 1.4% during the third quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 26,264 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $869,000 after purchasing an additional 370 shares during the last quarter. 76.99% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider John R. Crockett III sold 9,161 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $34.35, for a total value of $314,680.35. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 12,434 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $427,107.90. This represents a 42.42 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Tadd J. Henninger sold 6,639 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.16, for a total transaction of $213,510.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 11,210 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $360,513.60. This trade represents a 37.20 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have weighed in on PPL shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. assumed coverage on PPL in a report on Friday, October 25th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $37.00 target price on the stock. Citigroup raised their price objective on shares of PPL from $31.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Jefferies Financial Group reduced 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. Barclays cut their price objective on shares of PPL from $34.00 to $33.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, BMO Capital Markets initiated coverage on PPL in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $36.00 price target on the stock. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, PPL currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $34.00.

PPL Stock Down 2.0 %

Shares of PPL stock opened at $32.85 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17, a current ratio of 1.29 and a quick ratio of 1.07. PPL Co. has a 1-year low of $25.35 and a 1-year high of $35.15. The business has a 50-day moving average of $33.00 and a 200-day moving average of $32.16. The company has a market capitalization of $24.24 billion, a PE ratio of 29.33, a P/E/G ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 0.83.

PPL (NYSE:PPL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, November 1st. The utilities provider reported $0.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.42. PPL had a net margin of 9.95% and a return on equity of 9.20%. The firm had revenue of $2.07 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.10 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.43 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 1.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts forecast that PPL Co. will post 1.72 EPS for the current fiscal year.

PPL Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 2nd. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 10th were paid a dividend of $0.2575 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 10th. This represents a $1.03 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.14%. PPL’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 91.97%.

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.