Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) Stock Holdings Lifted by Capital Investment Advisory Services LLC

Capital Investment Advisory Services LLC boosted its position in shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) by 2.6% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 6,788 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 171 shares during the period. Capital Investment Advisory Services LLC’s holdings in Prudential Financial were worth $704,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the business. FMR LLC lifted its position in shares of Prudential Financial by 2.9% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,315,215 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $124,801,000 after purchasing an additional 36,599 shares in the last quarter. Czech National Bank increased its stake in Prudential Financial by 46.8% in the third quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 63,444 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $6,020,000 after acquiring an additional 20,235 shares during the period. Tyche Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in Prudential Financial during the 4th quarter worth approximately $815,000. Arvest Investments Inc. bought a new position in shares of Prudential Financial during the 4th quarter worth approximately $2,112,000. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 14.5% during the 3rd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 268,728 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $25,500,000 after acquiring an additional 34,054 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 56.83% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Prudential Financial

In other news, SVP Robert Axel sold 6,436 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $111.86, for a total value of $719,930.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 7,901 shares in the company, valued at $883,805.86. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, SVP Robert Axel sold 6,436 shares of Prudential Financial stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $111.86, for a total transaction of $719,930.96. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 7,901 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $883,805.86. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Andrew F. Sullivan sold 7,685 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $111.57, for a total value of $857,415.45. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 13,691 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,527,504.87. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 29,255 shares of company stock worth $3,215,664. Company insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Prudential Financial Price Performance

Shares of PRU opened at $111.47 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $40.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.66, a P/E/G ratio of 0.75 and a beta of 1.37. The business’s fifty day moving average is $111.38 and its 200 day moving average is $103.36. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a 12-month low of $77.22 and a 12-month high of $118.69. The company has a quick ratio of 0.13, a current ratio of 0.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 6th. The financial services provider reported $2.58 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.67 by ($0.09). The firm had revenue of $13.02 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $12.99 billion. Prudential Financial had a net margin of 4.89% and a return on equity of 14.52%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.42 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 13.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Prudential Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 20th were issued a dividend of $1.30 per share. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.66%. This is a positive change from Prudential Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.25. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 16th. Prudential Financial’s dividend payout ratio is 77.73%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

PRU has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Prudential Financial from $100.00 to $106.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday, April 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $118.00 price objective (down previously from $119.00) on shares of Prudential Financial in a research note on Wednesday, January 3rd. TheStreet raised Prudential Financial from a “c+” rating to an “a-” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 6th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on shares of Prudential Financial from $112.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Finally, UBS Group upped their price target on Prudential Financial from $108.00 to $112.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, February 12th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eleven have given a hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Prudential Financial currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $111.33.

Prudential Financial Company 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.