PPL Corporation $PPL Shares Newly Acquired by Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd.

Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. bought a new position in PPL Corporation (NYSE:PPL) in the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 191,022 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $6,283,000.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Cidel Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of PPL by 5.1% in the 2nd quarter. Cidel Asset Management Inc. now owns 7,468 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $271,000 after buying an additional 362 shares in the last quarter. MGO One Seven LLC grew its position in shares of PPL by 1.7% in the 3rd quarter. MGO One Seven LLC now owns 25,166 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $828,000 after buying an additional 419 shares during the last quarter. Ethos Financial Group LLC grew its position in shares of PPL by 0.9% in the 1st quarter. Ethos Financial Group LLC now owns 49,157 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,723,000 after buying an additional 429 shares during the last quarter. Syon Capital LLC raised its stake in shares of PPL by 5.3% during the 2nd quarter. Syon Capital LLC now owns 8,823 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $321,000 after acquiring an additional 448 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sowell Financial Services LLC raised its stake in shares of PPL by 4.1% during the 3rd quarter. Sowell Financial Services LLC now owns 12,057 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $397,000 after acquiring an additional 470 shares in the last quarter. 76.99% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

PPL Trading Up 0.8%

PPL stock opened at $36.01 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a current ratio of 0.91. The stock has a market cap of $27.10 billion, a PE ratio of 19.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.49 and a beta of 0.55. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $34.18 and a two-hundred day moving average of $36.07. PPL Corporation has a one year low of $31.56 and a one year high of $40.10.

PPL (NYSE:PPL) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, August 7th. The utilities provider reported $0.33 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.34 by ($0.01). PPL had a return on equity of 9.33% and a net margin of 13.47%. The business had revenue of $2.11 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.19 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.32 EPS. PPL’s revenue was up 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts anticipate that PPL Corporation will post 1.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

PPL Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, September 10th were given a $0.2850 dividend. This represents a $1.14 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, September 10th. PPL’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 67.46%.

Insider Activity at PPL

In related news, EVP Wendy Stark sold 5,406 shares of PPL stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $35.11, for a total value of $189,804.66. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 99,220 shares in the company, valued at $3,483,614.20. This trade represents a 5.17% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.34% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

PPL has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Bank of America reissued a “buy” rating on shares of PPL in a research report on Thursday, October 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of PPL from $43.00 to $44.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, September 28th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of PPL from $39.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on PPL from $42.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 16th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price target on PPL from $48.00 to $44.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, August 25th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $40.06.

PPL Profile

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.