The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company has increased its stake in PPL Co. (NYSE:PPL) by 0.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its latest filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor now owns 1,795,009 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at $58,266,000, representing approximately 0.24% of PPL’s total shares.
Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently adjusted their holdings of PPL. Notably, Pine Valley Investments Ltd Liability Co established a new position in PPL during the third quarter, worth around $225,000. Other significant changes include Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB increasing its stake by 32.3%, Tidal Investments LLC boosting its position by 11.9%, Franklin Resources Inc. raising its stake by 12.0%, and Principal Financial Group Inc. growing its position by 6.3% during the third quarter.
As of the latest quarter, 76.99% of PPL’s stock is held by hedge funds and other institutional investors. PPL’s stock price opened at $36.37 on Wednesday, with a 1-year low of $27.11 and a 1-year high of $36.66. The company’s market capitalization stands at $26.88 billion, with a P/E ratio of 30.06 and a beta of 0.65.
PPL recently announced its quarterly earnings results, reporting $0.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, slightly missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.37. The company also declared a quarterly dividend, with shareholders of record receiving $0.2725 per share, representing a 3.00% yield on an annualized basis.
Analyst ratings for PPL have been mixed, with Citigroup upgrading the stock to a “strong-buy” rating, while Barclays, Morgan Stanley, and UBS Group maintain various “hold” or “neutral” ratings. The consensus rating among analysts is “Moderate Buy” with an average price target of $35.70.
