PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL) Shares Sold by Nordea Investment Management AB

Nordea Investment Management AB lessened its position in shares of PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL - Free Report) by 92.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 36,251 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 455,038 shares during the quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB's holdings in PPL were worth $1,175,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in PPL. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. increased its stake in PPL by 1.7% in the 3rd quarter. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. now owns 17,696 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $585,000 after buying an additional 301 shares during the period. Cobblestone Capital Advisors LLC NY boosted its holdings in PPL by 2.4% in the 3rd quarter. Cobblestone Capital Advisors LLC NY now owns 14,848 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $491,000 after purchasing an additional 348 shares in the last quarter. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC increased its position in PPL by 3.1% during the 3rd quarter. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC now owns 12,360 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $409,000 after purchasing an additional 370 shares during the period. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC grew its stake in shares of PPL by 1.4% during the 3rd 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 period. Finally, Centennial Wealth Advisory LLC increased its holdings in shares of PPL by 3.8% in the 3rd quarter. Centennial Wealth Advisory LLC now owns 11,678 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $386,000 after purchasing an additional 428 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.99% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

PPL has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets started coverage on shares of PPL in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $36.00 target price for the company. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price target on PPL from $39.00 to $38.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. Barclays raised shares of PPL from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. began coverage on shares of PPL in a research report on Friday, October 25th. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $37.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on PPL from $35.00 to $37.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, September 16th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $34.09.

Insider Activity

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

PPL Stock Down 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE PPL opened at $31.64 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.07, a current ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17. The stock has a market capitalization of $23.35 billion, a PE ratio of 28.25, a P/E/G ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.83. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $33.09 and a 200-day moving average of $31.73. PPL Co. has a 52-week low of $25.35 and a 52-week high of $35.15.

PPL (NYSE:PPL - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, November 1st. The utilities provider reported $0.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.42. The firm had revenue of $2.07 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.10 billion. PPL had a return on equity of 9.20% and a net margin of 9.95%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 1.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.43 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that PPL Co. will post 1.72 EPS for the current year.

PPL Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 2nd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 10th were given a $0.2575 dividend. This represents a $1.03 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.26%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 10th. PPL's payout ratio is currently 91.96%.

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.