DRW Securities LLC Buys Shares of 36,832 PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL)

DRW Securities LLC bought a new stake in shares of PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL) in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 36,832 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,218,000.

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

Insider Activity

In other news, insider John R. Crockett III sold 9,161 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $34.35, for a total transaction of $314,680.35. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 12,434 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $427,107.90. This trade represents a 42.42 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on PPL shares. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on PPL in a report on Thursday, September 19th. They set a “buy” rating and a $38.00 price target on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on PPL from $35.00 to $37.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, September 16th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on PPL from $31.00 to $33.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Bank of America increased their target price on PPL from $34.00 to $35.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. began coverage on PPL in a report on Friday, October 25th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $37.00 target price on the stock. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $35.50.

PPL Trading Down 0.1 %

NYSE PPL opened at $34.40 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $25.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.71, a PEG ratio of 2.97 and a beta of 0.81. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $32.78 and a 200 day simple moving average of $30.72. PPL Co. has a 12 month low of $25.35 and a 12 month high of $35.00. The company has a current ratio of 1.29, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17.

PPL (NYSE:PPL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, November 1st. The utilities provider reported $0.42 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.42. PPL had a return on equity of 9.20% and a net margin of 9.95%. The business had revenue of $2.07 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.10 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.43 EPS. PPL’s quarterly revenue was up 1.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts predict that PPL Co. will post 1.72 EPS for the current fiscal year.

PPL Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced 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. This represents a $1.03 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.99%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 10th. PPL’s dividend payout ratio is presently 91.97%.

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.