Prudential PLC Sells 8,106 Shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU)

Prudential PLC lessened its holdings in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) by 4.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 157,274 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 8,106 shares during the period. Prudential PLC’s holdings in Prudential Financial were worth $18,642,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Prudential Financial by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 41,850,558 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $4,960,547,000 after acquiring an additional 220,671 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its position in Prudential Financial by 0.3% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 17,007,013 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,059,549,000 after purchasing an additional 49,830 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Prudential Financial by 2.2% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 8,856,360 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,050,635,000 after buying an additional 193,681 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 2,454,278 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $290,906,000 after buying an additional 6,938 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Prudential Financial by 1.1% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,409,521 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $285,601,000 after buying an additional 26,210 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 56.83% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently commented on PRU shares. Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on Prudential Financial from $149.00 to $152.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on Prudential Financial from $128.00 to $126.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. Barclays boosted their target price on Prudential Financial from $128.00 to $134.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Wells Fargo & Company increased 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 report on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, Piper Sandler lowered their price objective on shares of Prudential Financial from $124.00 to $122.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $126.08.

Prudential Financial Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:PRU opened at $104.65 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. The company has a market cap of $37.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 1.28. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a 12 month low of $100.09 and a 12 month high of $130.55. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $112.45 and a 200-day moving average price of $118.78.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last released 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 analysts anticipate that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 14.36 EPS for the current year.

Prudential Financial Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 13th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th were issued a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 18th. This is a positive change from Prudential Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.16%. Prudential Financial’s dividend payout ratio is 72.29%.

Insider Transactions at Prudential Financial

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

Prudential Financial Profile

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.