HITE Hedge Asset Management LLC Boosts Stock Holdings in PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL)

HITE Hedge Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL) by 24.7% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 307,773 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 60,966 shares during the quarter. HITE Hedge Asset Management LLC’s holdings in PPL were worth $10,181,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

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

Insider Buying and Selling at PPL

In other PPL news, insider John R. Crockett III sold 9,161 shares of the business’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 completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 12,434 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $427,107.90. The trade was a 42.42 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.22% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

PPL Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:PPL opened at $34.44 on Tuesday. The company’s 50-day moving average is $33.00 and its 200 day moving average is $30.88. PPL Co. has a fifty-two week low of $25.35 and a fifty-two week high of $35.15. The company has a market capitalization of $25.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.01 and a beta of 0.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a current ratio of 1.29.

PPL (NYSE:PPL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, November 1st. The utilities provider reported $0.42 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.42. PPL had a return on equity of 9.20% and a net margin of 9.95%. The company had revenue of $2.07 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.10 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.43 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 1.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts forecast that PPL Co. will post 1.72 earnings per share for the current year.

PPL Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 2nd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 10th will be given a dividend of $0.2575 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 10th. This represents a $1.03 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.99%. PPL’s dividend payout ratio is currently 91.97%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on PPL shares. Barclays increased their price target on shares of PPL from $30.00 to $34.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. Bank of America raised their target price on shares of PPL from $34.00 to $35.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on PPL in a research note on Thursday, September 19th. They set a “buy” rating and a $38.00 target price for the company. Wells Fargo & Company upped 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. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. assumed coverage on PPL in a research report on Friday, October 25th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $37.00 price target for the company. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $35.50.

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.