PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL) Shares Purchased by Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd.

Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL) by 17.2% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 292,396 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 42,972 shares during the period. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd.’s holdings in PPL were worth $9,491,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Sanctuary Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of PPL by 85.7% in the third quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 111,288 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $3,834,000 after acquiring an additional 51,366 shares in the last quarter. Cbre Investment Management Listed Real Assets LLC raised its position in PPL by 6.6% in the 4th quarter. Cbre Investment Management Listed Real Assets LLC now owns 1,997,610 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $64,842,000 after purchasing an additional 124,275 shares in the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC boosted its stake in shares of PPL by 128.0% in the 4th quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 82,063 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,641,000 after buying an additional 46,071 shares during the period. HITE Hedge Asset Management LLC grew its position in shares of PPL by 24.7% during the third quarter. HITE Hedge Asset Management LLC now owns 307,773 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $10,181,000 after buying an additional 60,966 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Truist Financial Corp increased its stake in shares of PPL by 2.4% during the fourth quarter. Truist Financial Corp now owns 696,487 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $22,608,000 after buying an additional 16,188 shares during the period. 76.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

PPL Stock Up 2.1 %

Shares of NYSE PPL opened at $35.70 on Monday. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $34.23 and a 200 day moving average price of $33.30. The stock has a market cap of $26.36 billion, a PE ratio of 29.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 0.76. The company has a quick ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 0.86 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 $35.97.

PPL (NYSE:PPL) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The utilities provider reported $0.34 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.37 by ($0.03). The business had revenue of $2.21 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.09 billion. PPL had a net margin of 10.49% and a return on equity of 8.88%. Equities research analysts forecast that PPL Co. will post 1.83 earnings per share for the current year.

PPL Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.2725 per share. 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 3.05%. PPL’s dividend payout ratio is 90.08%.

Insider Activity at PPL

In other news, COO David J. Bonenberger sold 981 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 28th. The shares were 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 transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider John R. Crockett III sold 1,589 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $33.12, for a total transaction of $52,627.68. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 10,845 shares in the company, valued at approximately $359,186.40. This trade represents a 12.78 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 5,140 shares of company stock worth $173,005 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have commented on PPL shares. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of PPL from $33.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Citigroup upgraded shares of PPL from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, March 10th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on PPL from $35.00 to $38.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price objective on PPL from $39.00 to $38.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. Finally, UBS Group raised their target price on PPL from $35.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, March 21st. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $35.27.

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.