Zacks Investment Management Trims Position in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU)

Zacks Investment Management lessened its stake in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) by 9.2% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 837,108 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 84,618 shares during the period. Prudential Financial comprises approximately 0.9% of Zacks Investment Management’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 25th largest holding. Zacks Investment Management owned 0.24% of Prudential Financial worth $99,222,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of PRU. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in Prudential Financial by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 41,850,558 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $4,960,547,000 after purchasing an additional 220,671 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of 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 valued at $1,050,635,000 after acquiring an additional 193,681 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its position in shares of Prudential Financial by 0.3% during the fourth 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 purchasing an additional 6,938 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in Prudential Financial by 1.1% in 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 purchasing an additional 26,210 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Amundi boosted its stake in shares of Prudential Financial by 32.7% during the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 1,535,514 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $181,851,000 after buying an additional 378,266 shares during the period. 56.83% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Prudential Financial

In related news, major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential bought 52,595 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 25th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $28.52 per share, with a total value of $1,500,009.40. Following the completion of the purchase, the insider now owns 139,987 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,992,429.24. The trade was a 60.18 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Andrew F. Sullivan sold 6,000 shares of Prudential Financial stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $105.98, for a total value 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 represents a 18.14 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.31% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on PRU shares. BMO Capital Markets started coverage on shares of Prudential Financial in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. They issued an “underperform” rating and a $101.00 price target for the company. Piper Sandler cut their price target on shares of Prudential Financial from $122.00 to $110.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on shares of 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 lowered their target price on Prudential Financial from $118.00 to $108.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. Finally, Barclays dropped their target price on Prudential Financial from $134.00 to $106.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $121.85.

Prudential Financial Stock Down 1.2 %

PRU stock opened at $100.20 on Wednesday. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a twelve month low of $90.38 and a twelve month high of $130.55. The firm has a market capitalization of $35.51 billion, a PE ratio of 13.41, a P/E/G ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 1.11. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $108.47 and its 200-day moving average is $117.30. The company has a quick ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last announced its quarterly earnings results 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 net margin of 4.01% and a return on equity of 15.86%. Sell-side analysts expect 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 given a $1.35 dividend. This is a boost from Prudential Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 18th. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.39%. Prudential Financial’s payout ratio is presently 72.29%.

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.