Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) EVP Ann Kappler Sells 7,652 Shares

Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) EVP Ann Kappler sold 7,652 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $125.01, for a total value of $956,576.52. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 14,407 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,801,019.07. The trade was a 34.69% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website.

Prudential Financial Stock Performance

Shares of PRU opened at $124.55 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $42.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.38 and a beta of 0.84. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a 52-week low of $91.89 and a 52-week high of $127.72. The company has a quick ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $115.78 and a 200 day moving average price of $105.44.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 4th. The financial services provider reported $4.08 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.52 by $0.56. Prudential Financial had a net margin of 6.51% and a return on equity of 16.68%. The business had revenue of $14.15 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.36 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $3.58 EPS. Research analysts predict that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 14.17 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Prudential Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 25th will be given a $1.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 25th. This represents a $5.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.5%. Prudential Financial’s payout ratio is 50.72%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently commented on PRU. BMO Capital Markets cut their target price on Prudential Financial from $91.00 to $87.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 23rd. Weiss Ratings upgraded Prudential Financial from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on Prudential Financial from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, July 10th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on Prudential Financial from $113.00 to $123.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 11th. Finally, Morgan Stanley restated an “underweight” rating and set a $92.00 target price (down from $106.00) on shares of Prudential Financial in a research report on Monday, May 4th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and five have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $107.77.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Prudential Financial

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Prudential Financial in the 2nd quarter worth $3,507,481,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp purchased a new position in Prudential Financial during the second quarter worth about $209,055,000. Bank of America Corp DE acquired a new stake in Prudential Financial in the second quarter valued at about $208,957,000. Deutsche Bank AG acquired a new stake in Prudential Financial in the second quarter valued at about $157,752,000. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership increased its position in Prudential Financial by 95.3% during the 1st quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 2,556,748 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $249,769,000 after purchasing an additional 1,247,371 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 56.83% of the company’s stock.

Prudential Financial Company Profile

Prudential Financial, Inc, headquartered in Newark, New Jersey, is a diversified financial services company with roots dating to 1875. The firm provides a range of insurance, retirement and investment products aimed at helping individual and institutional clients manage risk, accumulate and protect wealth, and plan for retirement. Prudential’s long history in life insurance and related financial services has positioned it as a major participant in the U.S. insurance market and a provider of services to a broad client base.

Prudential’s core business activities include individual life insurance, annuities, retirement solutions and group insurance products for employers.