Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) Shares Bought by SFE Investment Counsel

SFE Investment Counsel increased its stake in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) by 26.9% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 64,823 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 13,725 shares during the quarter. Prudential Financial comprises 1.4% of SFE Investment Counsel’s portfolio, making the stock its 23rd largest position. SFE Investment Counsel’s holdings in Prudential Financial were worth $7,239,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Prudential Financial by 2.2% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 8,856,360 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,050,635,000 after buying an additional 193,681 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 23.7% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 4,686,690 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $555,513,000 after purchasing an additional 897,916 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 11.5% in the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 3,410,363 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $404,230,000 after purchasing an additional 352,335 shares during the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 6.1% in the 4th quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 1,706,530 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $202,279,000 after purchasing an additional 97,406 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mariner LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 3.7% in the 4th quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 1,476,899 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $175,051,000 after purchasing an additional 52,010 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 56.83% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential bought 1,675,978 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 16th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $28.64 per share, for a total transaction of $48,000,009.92. Following the acquisition, the insider owned 3,168,461 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $90,744,723.04. The trade was a 112.29% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.25% of the company’s stock.

Prudential Financial Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE PRU opened at $105.34 on Thursday. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $105.13 and a 200-day moving average price of $108.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 0.17 and a quick ratio of 0.17. The stock has a market cap of $37.29 billion, a PE ratio of 16.69, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.03 and a beta of 1.07. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a 1 year low of $90.38 and a 1 year high of $130.55.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The financial services provider reported $3.29 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.18 by $0.11. Prudential Financial had a net margin of 3.84% and a return on equity of 15.84%. The company had revenue of $13.61 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.76 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $3.12 earnings per share. Prudential Financial’s quarterly revenue was down 38.2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts anticipate that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 14.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Prudential Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 12th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 20th were issued a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, May 20th. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.13%. Prudential Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 85.58%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on Prudential Financial from $117.00 to $113.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, July 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Prudential Financial from $126.00 to $136.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. UBS Group decreased their target price on Prudential Financial from $122.00 to $110.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, May 27th. Wall Street Zen cut Prudential Financial from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, July 5th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their target price on Prudential Financial from $120.00 to $117.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $121.75.

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.