PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL) Shares Sold by Sentry Investment Management LLC

Sentry Investment Management LLC cut its stake in shares of PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL) by 14.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 2,612 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 425 shares during the period. Sentry Investment Management LLC’s holdings in PPL were worth $85,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its position in PPL by 3,322.3% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 212,423 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $6,421,000 after buying an additional 206,216 shares during the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. raised its position in shares of PPL by 35.4% in the 3rd quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 48,220 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,585,000 after purchasing an additional 12,609 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted its stake in shares of PPL by 4.2% during the 3rd quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 60,749 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,010,000 after buying an additional 2,474 shares during the last quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of PPL during the third quarter worth approximately $253,000. Finally, abrdn plc increased its stake in shares of PPL by 26.3% in the third quarter. abrdn plc now owns 891,238 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $29,469,000 after buying an additional 185,491 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.99% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at PPL

In other PPL news, COO David J. Bonenberger sold 981 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $33.48, for a total value of $32,843.88. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 45,414 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,520,460.72. This trade represents a 2.11 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, SVP Tadd J. Henninger sold 6,639 shares of PPL stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 11,210 shares in the company, valued at $360,513.60. The trade was a 37.20 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 10,633 shares of company stock valued at $346,657 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently commented on PPL. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of PPL from $31.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Bank of America lifted their target price on PPL from $34.00 to $35.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. BMO Capital Markets initiated coverage on shares of PPL in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $36.00 price target for the company. Barclays increased their target price on shares of PPL from $33.00 to $36.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group dropped 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 research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $34.27.

PPL Trading Down 1.0 %

Shares of NYSE:PPL opened at $34.53 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a current ratio of 0.86. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $33.23 and its 200-day moving average is $32.84. The company has a market cap of $25.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.54, a P/E/G ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 0.83. PPL Co. has a 52-week low of $25.87 and a 52-week high of $35.15.

PPL (NYSE:PPL) last issued 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). PPL had a return on equity of 8.88% and a net margin of 10.49%. The business had revenue of $2.21 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.09 billion. Equities research analysts predict that PPL Co. will post 1.83 earnings per share for the current year.

PPL Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Monday, March 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.2725 per share. This is a boost from PPL’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.26. This represents a $1.09 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.16%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 10th. PPL’s dividend payout ratio is presently 90.08%.

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.