Citigroup Increases PPL (NYSE:PPL) Price Target to $36.00

PPL (NYSE:PPL) had its price objective upped by stock analysts at Citigroup from $31.00 to $36.00 in a report issued on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a “neutral” rating on the utilities provider’s stock. Citigroup’s target price suggests a potential upside of 10.91% from the company’s current price.

PPL has been the subject of several other research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. initiated coverage on shares of PPL in a research note on Friday, October 25th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $37.00 price objective for the company. Bank of America increased their price target on PPL from $34.00 to $35.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Barclays boosted their price objective on PPL from $30.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on PPL in a research note on Thursday, September 19th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $38.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on PPL from $35.00 to $37.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $34.09.

PPL Stock Down 0.8 %

Shares of PPL stock traded down $0.27 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $32.46. The company had a trading volume of 1,031,942 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,836,785. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $33.13 and a 200-day simple moving average of $31.11. PPL has a 12 month low of $25.35 and a 12 month high of $35.15. The company has a market cap of $23.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.90 and a beta of 0.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17, a current ratio of 1.29 and a quick ratio of 1.07.

PPL (NYSE:PPL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, November 1st. The utilities provider reported $0.42 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.42. The business had revenue of $2.07 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.10 billion. PPL had a return on equity of 9.20% and a net margin of 9.95%. The business’s revenue was up 1.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.43 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that PPL will post 1.72 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider John R. Crockett III sold 9,161 shares of PPL stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $34.35, for a total value of $314,680.35. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 12,434 shares in the company, valued at approximately $427,107.90. The trade was a 42.42 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Fortitude Family Office LLC lifted its stake in PPL by 195.5% in the 3rd quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 780 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 516 shares in the last quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. bought a new stake in PPL in the second quarter worth $29,000. Redwood Wealth Management Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of PPL in the 2nd quarter valued at about $29,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in shares of PPL during the third quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Finally, Family Firm Inc. purchased a new stake in PPL during the 2nd quarter valued at $38,000. Institutional investors own 76.99% of the company’s stock.

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.