Slocum Gordon & Co LLP Sells 1,549 Shares of PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL)

Slocum Gordon & Co LLP cut its holdings in shares of PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL) by 0.9% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 178,755 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 1,549 shares during the period. PPL makes up about 3.7% of Slocum Gordon & Co LLP’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 10th largest holding. Slocum Gordon & Co LLP’s holdings in PPL were worth $4,943,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. acquired a new position in PPL during the 2nd quarter valued at about $29,000. Lynx Investment Advisory bought a new position in shares of PPL in the second quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Family Firm Inc. acquired a new position in shares of PPL during the second quarter valued at approximately $38,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in PPL by 46.7% during the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,507 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 480 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Central Pacific Bank Trust Division acquired a new stake in PPL in the first quarter worth approximately $42,000. 76.99% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

PPL has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on PPL from $31.00 to $33.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, August 23rd. StockNews.com raised shares of PPL from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, May 10th. Bank of America lifted their price objective on shares of PPL from $33.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 29th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of PPL from $32.00 to $35.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, August 5th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, PPL currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $33.18.

PPL Trading Up 0.3 %

Shares of PPL opened at $32.26 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $29.88 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $28.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.12, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 1.11. The company has a market cap of $23.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.21, a PEG ratio of 2.72 and a beta of 0.82. PPL Co. has a 52-week low of $22.20 and a 52-week high of $32.54.

PPL (NYSE:PPL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, August 2nd. The utilities provider reported $0.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.33 by $0.05. PPL had a return on equity of 9.26% and a net margin of 10.17%. The business had revenue of $1.88 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.92 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.29 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that PPL Co. will post 1.72 EPS for the current fiscal year.

PPL Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 1st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 10th will be given a dividend of $0.2575 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 10th. This represents a $1.03 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.19%. PPL’s payout ratio is currently 100.00%.

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.