PPL (NYSE:PPL) Stock Picked Up by Analysts at Truist Financial

Stock analysts at Truist Financial began coverage on shares of PPL (NYSE:PPL) in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday, Briefing.com reports. The firm set a “buy” rating and a $41.00 price target on the utilities provider’s stock. Truist Financial‘s price objective points to a potential upside of 17.27% from the stock’s previous close.

A number of other equities analysts have also weighed in on the stock. Scotiabank initiated coverage on shares of PPL in a research report on Tuesday, September 29th. They set a “sector outperform” rating and a $36.00 target price for the company. BTIG Research restated a “buy” rating and set a $41.00 price objective on shares of PPL in a research report on Tuesday, October 20th. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price target on PPL from $48.00 to $44.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, August 25th. Royal Bank Of Canada began coverage on shares of PPL in a research report on Tuesday, September 15th. They set a “sector perform” rating and a $35.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Mizuho upgraded shares of PPL to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, July 3rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $40.06.

PPL Stock Down 0.0%

Shares of PPL stock opened at $34.96 on Tuesday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $34.13 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $36.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a current ratio of 0.91. PPL has a 52-week low of $31.56 and a 52-week high of $40.10. The stock has a market capitalization of $26.31 billion, a PE ratio of 18.91, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.42 and a beta of 0.56.

PPL (NYSE:PPL) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, August 7th. The utilities provider reported $0.33 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.34 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $2.11 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.19 billion. PPL had a return on equity of 9.33% and a net margin of 13.47%. PPL’s quarterly revenue was up 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.32 earnings per share. PPL has set its FY 2026 guidance at 1.900-1.980 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that PPL will post 1.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other PPL news, EVP Wendy Stark sold 5,406 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $35.11, for a total transaction of $189,804.66. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 99,220 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,483,614.20. This trade represents a 5.17% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.34% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On PPL

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Park Avenue Securities LLC lifted its holdings in shares of PPL by 78.9% during the 3rd quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 24,083 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $792,000 after purchasing an additional 10,619 shares during the last quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of PPL by 30.6% in the 3rd quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 39,395 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,296,000 after purchasing an additional 9,226 shares during the last quarter. Miller Howard Investments Inc. NY grew its position in PPL by 1.4% during the 3rd quarter. Miller Howard Investments Inc. NY now owns 305,673 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $10,054,000 after purchasing an additional 4,287 shares during the last quarter. Apollon Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of PPL by 23.1% during the third quarter. Apollon Wealth Management LLC now owns 18,580 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $611,000 after buying an additional 3,491 shares during the period. Finally, Code Waechter LLC grew its stake in PPL by 10.9% during the 3rd quarter. Code Waechter LLC now owns 10,574 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $348,000 after purchasing an additional 1,039 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.99% of the company’s stock.

About PPL

PPL Corporation (NYSE:PPL) is an energy and utility holding company headquartered in Allentown, Pennsylvania. Through its regulated utility subsidiaries, the company delivers electricity and natural gas, operates electric distribution and transmission systems, and provides related energy services to residential, commercial, and industrial customers.

PPL’s principal businesses include PPL Electric Utilities in Pennsylvania, Louisville Gas and Electric Company and Kentucky Utilities in Kentucky, and Rhode Island Energy in Rhode Island.