California Public Employees Retirement System Boosts Stock Holdings in PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL)

California Public Employees Retirement System increased its holdings in shares of PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL - Free Report) by 1.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,406,042 shares of the utilities provider's stock after acquiring an additional 41,087 shares during the period. California Public Employees Retirement System owned approximately 0.46% of PPL worth $110,560,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Boston Partners lifted its position in shares of PPL by 8,266.9% during the 4th quarter. Boston Partners now owns 9,518,141 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $309,060,000 after buying an additional 9,404,382 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in PPL in the 4th quarter worth $228,509,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in PPL during the fourth quarter worth $147,480,000. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its holdings in PPL by 12.0% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 34,758,947 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,115,824,000 after purchasing an additional 3,731,412 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Reaves W H & Co. Inc. grew its position in shares of PPL by 182.2% in the fourth quarter. Reaves W H & Co. Inc. now owns 3,951,116 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $128,254,000 after purchasing an additional 2,551,070 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.99% of the company's stock.

PPL Trading Down 4.8 %

Shares of PPL stock traded down $1.75 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $34.48. The stock had a trading volume of 8,277,307 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,765,354. The firm has a market cap of $25.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 0.65. 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 has a 50-day moving average of $34.51 and a two-hundred day moving average of $33.41. PPL Co. has a 12-month low of $25.93 and a 12-month high of $36.64.

Remove Ads

PPL (NYSE:PPL - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The utilities provider reported $0.34 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.37 by ($0.03). The business had revenue of $2.21 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.09 billion. PPL had a net margin of 10.49% and a return on equity of 8.88%. Sell-side analysts forecast that PPL Co. will post 1.83 earnings per share for the current year.

PPL Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th were issued a $0.2725 dividend. This is a positive change from PPL's previous quarterly dividend of $0.26. This represents a $1.09 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.16%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 10th. PPL's dividend payout ratio is currently 90.08%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other PPL news, SVP Tadd J. Henninger sold 1,424 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $33.48, for a total transaction of $47,675.52. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 11,259 shares in the company, valued at $376,951.32. This represents a 11.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider John R. Crockett III sold 1,589 shares of PPL 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 completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 10,845 shares of the company's stock, valued at $359,186.40. The trade was a 12.78 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 5,140 shares of company stock valued at $173,005. Company insiders own 0.22% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on PPL shares. Barclays raised their price target on shares of PPL from $33.00 to $36.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. UBS Group lifted their price target on PPL from $35.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, March 21st. Citigroup raised PPL from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Monday, March 10th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their target price 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. Finally, BMO Capital Markets assumed coverage on shares of PPL in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $36.00 target price for the company. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, PPL presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $35.27.

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.