Private Advisor Group LLC Lowers Stock Holdings in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU)

Private Advisor Group LLC trimmed its position in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) by 0.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 58,831 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 151 shares during the quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC’s holdings in Prudential Financial were worth $6,973,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of PRU. Grove Bank & Trust lifted its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 65.9% in the fourth quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 219 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 87 shares in the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Prudential Financial in the third quarter worth about $31,000. CGC Financial Services LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 82.1% in the fourth quarter. CGC Financial Services LLC now owns 275 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 124 shares in the last quarter. Wingate Wealth Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Prudential Financial in the fourth quarter worth about $33,000. Finally, Quarry LP lifted its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 376.3% in the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 281 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 222 shares in the last quarter. 56.83% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Prudential Financial Stock Down 1.5 %

Shares of NYSE PRU opened at $109.45 on Friday. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a one year low of $104.44 and a one year high of $130.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 0.16 and a quick ratio of 0.16. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $116.88 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $119.62. The stock has a market capitalization of $39.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.65, a PEG ratio of 0.99 and a beta of 1.31.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The financial services provider reported $2.96 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.36 by ($0.40). Prudential Financial had a return on equity of 15.86% and a net margin of 4.01%. As a group, analysts expect that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 14.34 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Prudential Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 13th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be paid a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.93%. This is an increase from Prudential Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 18th. Prudential Financial’s payout ratio is presently 72.29%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Prudential Financial from $128.00 to $134.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. BMO Capital Markets assumed coverage on shares of Prudential Financial in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. They issued an “underperform” rating and a $101.00 target price on the stock. Piper Sandler lowered their target price on shares of Prudential Financial from $127.00 to $124.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. TD Cowen raised their target price on shares of Prudential Financial from $130.00 to $133.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 27th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Prudential Financial from $113.00 to $118.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday. 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 assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Prudential Financial presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $125.69.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential bought 537,249 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 25th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $27.92 per share, with a total value of $14,999,992.08. Following the completion of the purchase, the insider now directly owns 4,780,293 shares in the company, valued at $133,465,780.56. This represents a 12.66 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.31% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.