Yousif Capital Management LLC Sells 9,866 Shares of PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL)

Yousif Capital Management LLC trimmed its position in shares of PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL) by 6.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 140,509 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 9,866 shares during the period. Yousif Capital Management LLC’s holdings in PPL were worth $3,808,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Allworth Financial LP lifted its position in shares of PPL by 179.8% in the fourth quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 1,038 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 667 shares in the last quarter. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in PPL in the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Altshuler Shaham Ltd purchased a new stake in PPL during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Anchor Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of PPL during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Finally, Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV lifted its holdings in shares of PPL by 138.9% in the fourth quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 1,371 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $37,000 after buying an additional 797 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.99% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently weighed in on PPL. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on shares of PPL from $32.00 to $30.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 20th. Argus raised PPL from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $30.00 target price on the stock in a report on Friday, March 8th. Barclays increased their price target on PPL from $27.00 to $28.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 14th. Bank of America lifted their price objective on PPL from $29.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. Finally, TheStreet downgraded PPL from a “b-” rating to a “c” rating in a research report on Friday, February 16th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $32.50.

PPL Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:PPL opened at $27.02 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.88, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.05. The company has a market capitalization of $19.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.02, a PEG ratio of 2.46 and a beta of 0.81. PPL Co. has a 12 month low of $22.20 and a 12 month high of $29.03. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $26.92 and its 200 day moving average is $26.30.

PPL (NYSE:PPL) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, February 16th. The utilities provider reported $0.40 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.38 by $0.02. PPL had a return on equity of 8.45% and a net margin of 8.90%. The firm had revenue of $2.03 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.56 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.28 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 11.3% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that PPL Co. will post 1.7 EPS for the current year.

PPL Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 8th were paid a dividend of $0.2575 per share. This is a positive change from PPL’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.24. This represents a $1.03 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.81%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 7th. PPL’s payout ratio is currently 103.00%.

PPL 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.