191,022 Shares of PPL Corporation $PPL Purchased by Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd.

Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in PPL Corporation (NYSE:PPL) in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 191,022 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $6,283,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Washington Trust Advisors Inc. increased its position in shares of PPL by 494.5% during the second quarter. Washington Trust Advisors Inc. now owns 862 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 717 shares during the period. Allied Private Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of PPL in the second quarter valued at approximately $42,000. Covestor Ltd boosted its holdings in shares of PPL by 206.7% in the second quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 1,291 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $47,000 after purchasing an additional 870 shares during the period. Compass Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of PPL in the third quarter valued at approximately $46,000. Finally, Root Financial Partners LLC bought a new position in PPL in the third quarter worth approximately $79,000. 76.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have commented on PPL shares. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price objective on PPL from $48.00 to $44.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, August 25th. BMO Capital Markets lowered their target price on PPL from $40.00 to $38.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 10th. Barclays lowered their target price on PPL from $41.00 to $38.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, October 12th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on PPL from $39.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 21st. Finally, HSBC initiated coverage on PPL in a research note on Thursday, October 22nd. They set a “buy” rating and a $42.00 price target on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, PPL has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $40.06.

PPL Trading Up 0.8%

NYSE:PPL opened at $36.01 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $34.18 and a 200-day simple moving average of $36.07. PPL Corporation has a one year low of $31.56 and a one year high of $40.10. The firm has a market cap of $27.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.31, a P/E/G ratio of 3.49 and a beta of 0.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a current ratio of 0.91.

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

PPL Announces Dividend

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In other PPL news, EVP Wendy Stark sold 5,406 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $35.11, for a total transaction of $189,804.66. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 99,220 shares in the company, valued at $3,483,614.20. This represents a 5.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.34% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

About PPL

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.