Artemis Investment Management LLP Invests $15.67 Million in PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL)

Artemis Investment Management LLP purchased a new stake in shares of PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 482,692 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $15,668,000. Artemis Investment Management LLP owned approximately 0.07% of PPL at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of PPL. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its stake in PPL by 12.0% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 34,758,947 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,115,824,000 after acquiring an additional 3,731,412 shares during the period. Point72 Asset Management L.P. raised its holdings in shares of PPL by 91.3% during the second quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 5,821,936 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $160,977,000 after purchasing an additional 2,778,820 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its position in PPL by 6.2% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 35,089,490 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,160,760,000 after purchasing an additional 2,050,122 shares during the period. Electron Capital Partners LLC boosted its holdings in PPL by 71.3% in the second quarter. Electron Capital Partners LLC now owns 4,306,007 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $119,061,000 after purchasing an additional 1,792,200 shares during the last quarter. Finally, State Street Corp grew its position in PPL by 5.0% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 36,459,099 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,215,363,000 after purchasing an additional 1,720,941 shares during the period. 76.99% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at PPL

In other PPL news, SVP Tadd J. Henninger sold 6,639 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 represents a 37.20 % decrease in their position. 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 9,161 shares of PPL stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 21st. The stock was 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 directly owns 12,434 shares in the company, valued at $427,107.90. This trade represents 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 Up 0.3 %

PPL opened at $33.27 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $24.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 0.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a current ratio of 1.29. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $33.08 and its 200 day moving average is $31.84. PPL Co. has a fifty-two week low of $25.35 and a fifty-two week high of $35.15.

PPL (NYSE:PPL) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, November 1st. The utilities provider reported $0.42 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.42. PPL had a return on equity of 9.20% and a net margin of 9.95%. The business had revenue of $2.07 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.10 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.43 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 1.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that PPL Co. will post 1.72 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

PPL Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 2nd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 10th were issued a dividend of $0.2575 per share. This represents a $1.03 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.10%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 10th. PPL’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 91.97%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on PPL shares. Bank of America increased their price target on PPL from $34.00 to $35.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their target price on PPL from $39.00 to $38.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. initiated coverage on PPL in a research note on Friday, October 25th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $37.00 price target for the company. BMO Capital Markets began coverage on shares of PPL in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $36.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Barclays upgraded shares of PPL from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, PPL currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $34.09.

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.