PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL) Shares Sold by National Pension Service

National Pension Service decreased its holdings in PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL - Free Report) by 8.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,000,154 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 97,464 shares during the quarter. National Pension Service owned 0.14% of PPL worth $32,465,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in PPL. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund boosted its position in PPL by 75.3% in the 4th quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund now owns 246,399 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $7,998,000 after buying an additional 105,832 shares during the period. Amalgamated Bank raised its stake in shares of PPL by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 146,777 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $4,764,000 after acquiring an additional 1,773 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its holdings in PPL by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 5,090,143 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $165,226,000 after purchasing an additional 44,557 shares during the period. IFP Advisors Inc grew its stake in PPL by 8,599.2% during the 4th quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 96,213 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $3,132,000 after purchasing an additional 95,107 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Roffman Miller Associates Inc. PA increased its holdings in PPL by 38.1% during the 4th quarter. Roffman Miller Associates Inc. PA now owns 223,107 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $7,242,000 after purchasing an additional 61,522 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.99% of the company's stock.

PPL Stock Performance

Shares of PPL stock traded down $0.49 on Tuesday, hitting $35.18. The stock had a trading volume of 5,775,720 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,581,770. The stock has a market cap of $25.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.06, a P/E/G ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 0.83. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.71 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 $35.91. The company's 50 day moving average price is $33.35 and its 200 day moving average price is $32.93.

PPL (NYSE:PPL - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The utilities provider reported $0.34 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.37 by ($0.03). The firm had revenue of $2.21 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.09 billion. PPL had a net margin of 10.49% and a return on equity of 8.88%. On average, research analysts anticipate that PPL Co. will post 1.83 EPS for the current year.

PPL Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be issued a $0.2725 dividend. This is an increase from PPL's previous quarterly dividend of $0.26. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 10th. This represents a $1.09 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.10%. PPL's payout ratio is presently 90.08%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on PPL shares. BMO Capital Markets started coverage on PPL in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $36.00 price objective for the company. Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of PPL from $34.00 to $35.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of PPL from $33.00 to $36.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Citigroup boosted their target price 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. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group cut their price target on PPL from $39.00 to $38.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, PPL has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $34.27.

Insider Transactions at PPL

In other news, insider John R. Crockett III sold 1,589 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, January 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $33.12, for a total value of $52,627.68. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 10,845 shares in the company, valued at $359,186.40. This trade represents a 12.78 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Tadd J. Henninger sold 6,639 shares of PPL stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $32.16, for a total value of $213,510.24. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 11,210 shares of the company's stock, valued at $360,513.60. This trade represents a 37.20 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 11,779 shares of company stock worth $386,515 over the last ninety days. 0.22% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

PPL 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.