Howard Capital Management Inc. Reduces Stock Position in PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL)

Howard Capital Management Inc. lessened its stake in shares of PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL) by 5.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 131,428 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 7,997 shares during the quarter. Howard Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in PPL were worth $4,266,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Creative Planning boosted its holdings in shares of PPL by 3.5% in the third quarter. Creative Planning now owns 114,763 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $3,796,000 after buying an additional 3,892 shares during the last quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of PPL in the third quarter worth approximately $345,000. Private Advisor Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of PPL by 19.4% in the third quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 81,993 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,712,000 after buying an additional 13,297 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of PPL by 3,322.3% in the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 212,423 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $6,421,000 after buying an additional 206,216 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of PPL by 23.6% in the third quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. now owns 63,199 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,091,000 after buying an additional 12,064 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.99% of the company’s stock.

PPL Trading Up 1.7 %

PPL stock opened at $34.75 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $25.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.72, a PEG ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 0.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.71. PPL Co. has a 1 year low of $25.87 and a 1 year high of $35.15. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $33.01 and its 200-day moving average price is $32.73.

PPL (NYSE:PPL) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The utilities provider reported $0.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.37 by ($0.03). The company had revenue of $2.21 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.09 billion. PPL had a net margin of 10.49% and a return on equity of 8.88%. On average, equities analysts predict that PPL Co. will post 1.83 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

PPL Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Monday, March 10th will be given a $0.2725 dividend. This represents a $1.09 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.14%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 10th. This is a boost from PPL’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.26. PPL’s payout ratio is currently 85.12%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price objective on shares of PPL from $39.00 to $38.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of PPL from $31.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. BMO Capital Markets assumed coverage on shares of PPL in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $36.00 target price on the stock. Barclays decreased their target price on shares of PPL from $34.00 to $33.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, Bank of America raised their target price on shares of PPL from $34.00 to $35.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $34.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider John R. Crockett III sold 1,589 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, January 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $33.12, for a total value of $52,627.68. Following the sale, the insider now owns 10,845 shares in the company, valued at approximately $359,186.40. The trade was a 12.78 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, COO David J. Bonenberger sold 981 shares of PPL stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $33.48, for a total transaction of $32,843.88. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 45,414 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,520,460.72. The trade was a 2.11 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 10,633 shares of company stock worth $346,657. Insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

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.