New England Asset Management Inc. Boosts Stock Holdings in PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL)

New England Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL) by 5.7% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 343,115 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 18,565 shares during the period. PPL accounts for approximately 1.8% of New England Asset Management Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 9th biggest position. New England Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in PPL were worth $11,350,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of PPL. Fortitude Family Office LLC grew its holdings in shares of PPL by 195.5% during the third quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 780 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 516 shares during the last quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. acquired a new position in PPL during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Redwood Wealth Management Group LLC bought a new position in PPL during the 2nd quarter worth $29,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new stake in shares of PPL in the 3rd quarter worth about $34,000. Finally, Lynx Investment Advisory bought a new stake in PPL in the 2nd quarter valued at about $38,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.99% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of PPL from $35.00 to $37.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, September 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. started coverage on PPL in a research note on Friday, October 25th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $37.00 target price on the stock. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on PPL from $31.00 to $33.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of PPL from $30.00 to $34.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Finally, Bank of America increased their target price on shares of PPL from $34.00 to $35.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, PPL presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $35.50.

PPL Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE PPL opened at $34.00 on Tuesday. PPL Co. has a one year low of $25.35 and a one year high of $34.04. The firm has a market capitalization of $25.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.36, a PEG ratio of 2.91 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a current ratio of 1.29, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $32.56 and a 200 day simple moving average of $30.51.

PPL (NYSE:PPL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, November 1st. The utilities provider reported $0.42 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.42. PPL had a net margin of 9.95% and a return on equity of 9.20%. The company had revenue of $2.07 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.10 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.43 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 1.1% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that PPL Co. will post 1.72 EPS for the current year.

PPL Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 1st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 10th were given a $0.2575 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 10th. This represents a $1.03 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.03%. PPL’s dividend payout ratio is currently 91.97%.

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.