First Horizon Advisors Inc. Acquires 4,425 Shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU)

First Horizon Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) by 2.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 167,110 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 4,425 shares during the period. First Horizon Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Prudential Financial were worth $19,808,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Savant Capital LLC grew its holdings in Prudential Financial by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Savant Capital LLC now owns 14,382 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,705,000 after purchasing an additional 83 shares during the period. Grove Bank & Trust increased its position in shares of Prudential Financial by 65.9% in the 4th quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 219 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 87 shares in the last quarter. Avidian Wealth Enterprises LLC raised its stake in Prudential Financial by 1.2% during the 3rd quarter. Avidian Wealth Enterprises LLC now owns 7,357 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $891,000 after buying an additional 89 shares during the period. Asset Dedication LLC lifted its holdings in Prudential Financial by 28.4% during the fourth quarter. Asset Dedication LLC now owns 420 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $50,000 after acquiring an additional 93 shares in the last quarter. Finally, RNC Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Prudential Financial by 3.3% in the fourth quarter. RNC Capital Management LLC now owns 2,990 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $354,000 after acquiring an additional 95 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 56.83% of the company’s stock.

Prudential Financial Stock Performance

PRU opened at $109.45 on Friday. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $116.88 and its 200 day simple moving average is $119.71. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a 52-week low of $104.44 and a 52-week high of $130.55. 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 $39.18 billion, a PE ratio of 14.65, a PEG ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 1.31.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The financial services provider reported $2.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates 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, sell-side analysts expect that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 14.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Prudential Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 13th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be given a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.93%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 18th. This is an increase from Prudential Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. Prudential Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 72.29%.

Insider Transactions at Prudential Financial

In other Prudential Financial news, major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential bought 537,249 shares of Prudential Financial stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 25th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $27.92 per share, for a total transaction of $14,999,992.08. Following the purchase, the insider now owns 4,780,293 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $133,465,780.56. The trade was a 12.66 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.31% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently commented on PRU. Evercore ISI raised Prudential Financial from an “underperform” rating to an “inline” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $117.00 to $140.00 in a research report on Thursday, November 14th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Prudential Financial from $113.00 to $118.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Prudential Financial from $128.00 to $134.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Piper Sandler cut their price objective on shares of Prudential Financial from $127.00 to $124.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their target price on Prudential Financial from $129.00 to $125.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $125.69.

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.