The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company Sells 9,529 Shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. $PRU

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company lowered its stake in shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) by 5.2% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 174,531 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 9,529 shares during the quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company owned 0.05% of Prudential Financial worth $18,837,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. BlackRock Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Prudential Financial in the 2nd quarter worth about $3,507,481,000. State Street Corp boosted its stake in shares of Prudential Financial by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 17,234,061 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,945,381,000 after purchasing an additional 210,959 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Prudential Financial by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 9,533,806 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,078,904,000 after purchasing an additional 26,414 shares during the last quarter. Morgan Stanley raised its position in Prudential Financial by 6.7% in the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 6,649,202 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $750,562,000 after purchasing an additional 420,081 shares during the period. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in Prudential Financial by 4.6% in the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,758,545 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $367,089,000 after purchasing an additional 166,641 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 56.83% of the company’s stock.

Prudential Financial Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:PRU opened at $119.80 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $117.95 and its 200-day simple moving average is $106.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a current ratio of 0.16. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a one year low of $91.89 and a one year high of $127.72. The firm has a market cap of $41.33 billion, a PE ratio of 10.85, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.26 and a beta of 0.84.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The financial services provider reported $4.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.52 by $0.56. Prudential Financial had a return on equity of 16.68% and a net margin of 6.51%.The firm had revenue of $14.15 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.36 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $3.58 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 14.35 EPS for the current year.

Prudential Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 25th will be issued a $1.40 dividend. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.7%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, August 25th. Prudential Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 50.72%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential sold 214,746 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.75, for a total transaction of $5,314,963.50. Following the transaction, the insider owned 7,973,657 shares in the company, valued at approximately $197,348,010.75. This trade represents a 2.62% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Ann M. Kappler sold 7,652 shares of Prudential Financial 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 sale, the executive vice president owned 14,407 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,801,019.07. The trade was a 34.69% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 0.05% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the company. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Prudential Financial from $92.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Monday, August 24th. Mizuho raised their price target on Prudential Financial from $101.00 to $109.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. Weiss Ratings raised Prudential Financial from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 16th. Barclays increased their target price on Prudential Financial from $90.00 to $92.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 7th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on Prudential Financial from $113.00 to $123.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and five have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $109.31.

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.