Compton Financial Group LLC Reduces Stock Holdings in PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL)

Compton Financial Group LLC cut its holdings in shares of PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL) by 7.6% in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 12,432 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 1,026 shares during the period. PPL comprises approximately 0.1% of Compton Financial Group LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 21st biggest holding. Compton Financial Group LLC’s holdings in PPL were worth $411,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in PPL. Leelyn Smith LLC grew its position in shares of PPL by 0.4% during the 2nd quarter. Leelyn Smith LLC now owns 79,887 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,209,000 after acquiring an additional 331 shares during the period. TFC Financial Management Inc. increased its holdings in PPL by 15.7% in the 2nd quarter. TFC Financial Management Inc. now owns 2,611 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $72,000 after acquiring an additional 355 shares in the last quarter. Centennial Wealth Advisory LLC lifted its stake in PPL by 3.4% in the 2nd quarter. Centennial Wealth Advisory LLC now owns 11,250 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $311,000 after buying an additional 366 shares in the last quarter. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of PPL by 3.1% during the third quarter. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC now owns 12,360 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $409,000 after acquiring an additional 370 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Exchange Traded Concepts LLC lifted its position in shares of PPL by 1.4% in the third quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 26,264 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $869,000 after acquiring an additional 370 shares in the last quarter. 76.99% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

PPL Trading Down 0.5 %

NYSE PPL traded down $0.15 during trading on Thursday, hitting $32.47. The stock had a trading volume of 327,342 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,849,824. The company has a market capitalization of $23.95 billion, a PE ratio of 31.67, a PEG ratio of 2.72 and a beta of 0.82. PPL Co. has a twelve month low of $23.36 and a twelve month high of $33.38. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.12. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $32.00 and a 200 day moving average price of $29.58.

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

PPL Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 1st. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 10th were issued a $0.2575 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 10th. This represents a $1.03 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.17%. PPL’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 100.00%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have weighed in on PPL. Bank of America raised their price objective on PPL from $33.00 to $34.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 29th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of PPL from $35.00 to $37.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on PPL in a research report on Thursday, September 19th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $38.00 price target for the company. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on PPL from $31.00 to $33.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $34.56.

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.