Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. Sells 15,222 Shares of PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL)

Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. lowered its position in PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL) by 7.0% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 201,585 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 15,222 shares during the quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in PPL were worth $6,668,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of PPL. Empowered Funds LLC increased its position in shares of PPL by 27.3% during the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 9,847 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $271,000 after purchasing an additional 2,111 shares during the last quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. increased its holdings in PPL by 22.2% during the first quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 40,984 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,128,000 after buying an additional 7,435 shares during the last quarter. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System boosted its stake in shares of PPL by 5.6% during the 1st quarter. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System now owns 884,838 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $24,590,000 after acquiring an additional 46,552 shares during the last quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its position in shares of PPL by 12.7% during the 1st quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 835,392 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $22,998,000 after acquiring an additional 94,251 shares during the period. Finally, Banco Santander S.A. purchased a new stake in shares of PPL in the 1st quarter worth $636,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.99% of the company’s stock.

PPL Stock Performance

PPL opened at $33.23 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $24.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.67, a PEG ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.81. PPL Co. has a fifty-two week low of $25.35 and a fifty-two week high of $33.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a current ratio of 1.29. The company has a fifty day moving average of $32.48 and a 200 day moving average of $30.36.

PPL (NYSE:PPL) last issued its earnings results on Friday, November 1st. The utilities provider reported $0.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.42. The firm 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% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.43 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that PPL Co. will post 1.72 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

PPL Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 1st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 10th were given a dividend of $0.2575 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, September 10th. This represents a $1.03 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.10%. PPL’s dividend payout ratio is currently 91.97%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

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.