Wescott Financial Advisory Group LLC Invests $230,000 in PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL)

Wescott Financial Advisory Group LLC acquired a new position in PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL) during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm acquired 6,954 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $230,000.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in PPL. Fortitude Family Office LLC lifted its stake 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 purchasing an additional 516 shares during the period. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. bought a new position in shares of PPL in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $29,000. Redwood Wealth Management Group LLC bought a new position in shares of PPL in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $29,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new position in shares of PPL in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $34,000. Finally, Lynx Investment Advisory bought a new position in shares of PPL in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $38,000. Institutional investors own 76.99% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently issued reports on PPL. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of PPL from $35.00 to $37.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, September 16th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of PPL from $31.00 to $33.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Barclays raised their target price on shares of PPL from $30.00 to $34.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. initiated coverage on shares of PPL in a report on Friday, October 25th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $37.00 target price for the company. Finally, Bank of America raised their target price on shares of PPL from $34.00 to $35.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $35.50.

PPL Stock Down 1.1 %

Shares of PPL opened at $34.45 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $25.42 billion, a PE ratio of 30.76, a P/E/G ratio of 3.00 and a beta of 0.81. The business has a fifty day moving average of $32.75 and a 200 day moving average of $30.66. PPL Co. has a 52-week low of $25.35 and a 52-week high of $35.00. The company has a quick ratio of 1.07, a current ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17.

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

PPL Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 2nd. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 10th will be given a $0.2575 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 10th. This represents a $1.03 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.99%. PPL’s dividend payout ratio is presently 91.97%.

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.