PPL (NYSE:PPL) Shares Gap Down – Time to Sell?

PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL)’s share price gapped down before the market opened on Friday . The stock had previously closed at $32.56, but opened at $31.76. PPL shares last traded at $33.01, with a volume of 480,948 shares traded.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently weighed in on PPL. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on PPL from $35.00 to $37.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on shares of PPL in a research note on Thursday, September 19th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $38.00 price objective for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. initiated coverage on shares of PPL in a research note on Friday, October 25th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $37.00 target price on the stock. Morgan Stanley upped 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. Finally, Bank of America lifted their price target on PPL from $33.00 to $34.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 29th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, PPL has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $35.40.

PPL Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.12, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 0.91. The firm has a market cap of $24.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.75 and a beta of 0.82. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $32.33 and its 200-day moving average is $29.97.

PPL (NYSE:PPL) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, August 2nd. The utilities provider reported $0.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.33 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $1.88 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.92 billion. PPL had a return on equity of 9.26% and a net margin of 10.17%. The firm’s revenue was up 3.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.29 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that PPL Co. will post 1.72 earnings per share for the current year.

PPL Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed 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. This represents a $1.03 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.16%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 10th. PPL’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 90.35%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On PPL

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Fortitude Family Office LLC raised its holdings in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 516 shares during the last quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. bought a new stake in shares of PPL during the 2nd quarter worth $29,000. Redwood Wealth Management Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of PPL in the 2nd quarter worth about $29,000. Lynx Investment Advisory bought a new position in PPL during the second quarter valued at about $38,000. Finally, Family Firm Inc. purchased a new stake in PPL during the second quarter worth about $38,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.99% of the company’s stock.

About PPL

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.