PPL Corp Hits 52-Week High On Planned Capital Investment

Share price of PPL Corporation (NYSE:PPL) , an electric and power company, hit a new 52-week high of $40.00 on May 26, closing a tad lower at $39.86. In the last six months the stock has returned about 16.5% compared with the Zacks categorized Utility - Electric Power industry’s gain of 8.1%.

In the last 52 weeks, PPL Corp.’s share price has ranged from a low of $32.08 to a high of $40. Average volume of shares traded in the last three months is approximately 3.1 million.

Factors behind the Performance

PPL Corp’s shares have been on the rise following strong first-quarter 2017 results that were declared on May 4. The company posted earnings per share of 62 cents, in line with the Zacks Consensus Estimate, even though the demand was vastly affected by mild weather conditions last winter.

The company has been a consistent performer, delivering positive earnings surprises in three of the trailing four quarters with an average surprise of 6.96%. The long-term earnings growth of the company is presently pegged at 5.0%.

The management of PPL Corp. believes in low risk. Since the company has a significant presence in the U.K., it reduced the risks associated with the foreign currency exchange rates to a great extent with the help of its hedging program. Even with the Brexit, the company is well-positioned to deliver projected growth in the upcoming quarters even if the currency rate declines.

PPL Corp.’s focuses on customer satisfaction in the areas it serves and has been consistently improving its operation and infrastructure. The company plans to invest $15.9 billion in the 2017–2021 timeframe, aiming to build a smarter and more secure energy grid and to build a cleaner tomorrow with green energy initiatives.

Keeping in mind the interest of the shareholders, PPL Corp. targets annual dividend growth of 4% through 2020. To live up to this commitment, the company increased annualized dividend by 4% in February from $1.52 per share to $1.58.

Stocks to Consider

PPL Corp’s currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). Investors can consider better-ranked stocks from the same industry like RWE AG (OTC:RWEOY) , sporting a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) and Avangrid, Inc. (NYSE:AGR) and Brookfield Infrastructure Partners LP (NYSE:BIP) carrying Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

RWE AG's Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2017 moved up nearly 24.7% to $2.02 per share in the last 60 days.

Avangrid delivered a positive earnings surprise of 7.35% in the first quarter of 2017. Its 2017 estimates have risen by 0.5% to $2.21 per share in the last 60 days.

Brookfield Infrastructure Partners’ Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2017 moved up nearly 2.5% to $3.22 per share in the last 60 days.

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