Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp Reduces Holdings in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU)

Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp lessened its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) by 2.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 171,382 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 3,655 shares during the quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp’s holdings in Prudential Financial were worth $20,314,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Grove Bank & Trust boosted its position in Prudential Financial by 65.9% during the fourth quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 219 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 87 shares during the last quarter. Centricity Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Prudential Financial during the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. CGC Financial Services LLC grew its position in shares of Prudential Financial by 82.1% in the fourth quarter. CGC Financial Services LLC now owns 275 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 124 shares in the last quarter. Wingate Wealth Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Prudential Financial in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Finally, Quarry LP lifted its position in Prudential Financial by 376.3% during the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 281 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 222 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 56.83% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Prudential Financial

In other Prudential Financial news, EVP Andrew F. Sullivan sold 6,000 shares of Prudential Financial stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $105.98, for a total value of $635,880.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 27,072 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,869,090.56. The trade was a 18.14 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential bought 52,595 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 25th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $28.52 per share, with a total value of $1,500,009.40. Following the purchase, the insider now directly owns 139,987 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,992,429.24. This trade represents a 60.18 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 0.31% of the company’s stock.

Prudential Financial Price Performance

Shares of NYSE PRU opened at $114.50 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $113.27 and its 200-day simple moving average is $118.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a current ratio of 0.16. The firm has a market capitalization of $40.99 billion, a PE ratio of 15.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 1.28. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $104.45 and a fifty-two week high of $130.55.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The financial services provider reported $2.96 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.36 by ($0.40). Prudential Financial had a return on equity of 15.86% and a net margin of 4.01%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 14.36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Prudential Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 13th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th were issued a dividend of $1.35 per share. This is a positive change from Prudential Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 18th. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.72%. Prudential Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 72.29%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have issued reports on PRU. BMO Capital Markets initiated coverage on Prudential Financial in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. They issued an “underperform” rating and a $101.00 target price for the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their target price on shares of Prudential Financial from $129.00 to $125.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on Prudential Financial from $136.00 to $128.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Prudential Financial from $113.00 to $118.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, Piper Sandler cut their price objective on Prudential Financial from $127.00 to $124.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Prudential Financial currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $126.15.

About Prudential Financial

Prudential Financial, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides insurance, investment management, and other financial products and services in the United States and internationally. It operates through PGIM, Retirement Strategies, Group Insurance, Individual Life, and International Businesses segments.