Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) Stock Position Cut by PFG Investments LLC

PFG Investments LLC decreased its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) by 46.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,354 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 3,705 shares during the period. PFG Investments LLC’s holdings in Prudential Financial were worth $452,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. First Financial Corp IN boosted its position in shares of Prudential Financial by 13.7% during the 4th quarter. First Financial Corp IN now owns 848 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $88,000 after purchasing an additional 102 shares in the last quarter. Hilltop Holdings Inc. boosted its position in shares of Prudential Financial by 1.5% during the 2nd quarter. Hilltop Holdings Inc. now owns 7,917 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $698,000 after purchasing an additional 116 shares in the last quarter. Private Portfolio Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of Prudential Financial by 1.7% during the 2nd quarter. Private Portfolio Partners LLC now owns 7,149 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $631,000 after purchasing an additional 119 shares in the last quarter. Patron Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of Prudential Financial by 2.4% during the 3rd quarter. Patron Partners LLC now owns 5,086 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $483,000 after purchasing an additional 119 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 5.1% in the fourth quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,451 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $244,000 after buying an additional 119 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 56.83% of the company’s stock.

Prudential Financial Trading Up 1.0 %

Shares of Prudential Financial stock opened at $117.02 on Thursday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $108.22 and its 200-day simple moving average is $101.04. The company has a market cap of $42.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.49, a PEG ratio of 0.85 and a beta of 1.36. The company has a current ratio of 0.13, a quick ratio of 0.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a 1 year low of $77.22 and a 1 year high of $117.17.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 6th. The financial services provider reported $2.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.67 by ($0.09). Prudential Financial had a return on equity of 14.52% and a net margin of 4.89%. The company had revenue of $13.02 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $12.99 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.42 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 6.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 13.4 EPS for the current year.

Prudential Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 20th were paid a dividend of $1.30 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 16th. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.44%. This is an increase from Prudential Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.25. Prudential Financial’s payout ratio is currently 77.73%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Prudential Financial

In other Prudential Financial news, EVP Ann M. Kappler sold 7,222 shares of Prudential Financial stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $108.39, for a total transaction of $782,792.58. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 24,381 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,642,656.59. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other Prudential Financial news, EVP Ann M. Kappler sold 7,222 shares of Prudential Financial stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $108.39, for a total transaction of $782,792.58. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 24,381 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,642,656.59. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Timothy L. Schmidt sold 7,912 shares of Prudential Financial stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $108.13, for a total value of $855,524.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 14,754 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,595,350.02. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 29,255 shares of company stock valued at $3,215,664. 0.31% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have commented on PRU. Raymond James cut shares of Prudential Financial from a “strong-buy” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, February 9th. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Prudential Financial from $108.00 to $112.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, February 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $118.00 target price (down from $119.00) on shares of Prudential Financial in a report on Wednesday, January 3rd. TheStreet raised shares of Prudential Financial from a “c+” rating to an “a-” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 6th. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of Prudential Financial from $105.00 to $109.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and ten have assigned a hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Prudential Financial presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $105.60.

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.