CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC Reduces Stake in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU)

CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC decreased its position in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) by 4.6% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 31,425 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 1,499 shares during the period. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC’s holdings in Prudential Financial were worth $3,722,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of PRU. Allianz SE purchased a new position in shares of Prudential Financial during the 4th quarter valued at $195,000. Allstate Corp bought a new position in Prudential Financial during the fourth quarter worth about $1,231,000. Maridea Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Prudential Financial in the fourth quarter worth about $207,000. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. lifted its stake in shares of Prudential Financial by 7.0% during the 4th quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 1,506 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $179,000 after buying an additional 98 shares in the last quarter. Finally, DnB Asset Management AS grew its stake in Prudential Financial by 3.1% in the 4th quarter. DnB Asset Management AS now owns 66,436 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $7,875,000 after buying an additional 1,979 shares in the last quarter. 56.83% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Prudential Financial Stock Up 1.0 %

Shares of PRU opened at $112.83 on Thursday. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a 1 year low of $104.45 and a 1 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 stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $112.69 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $118.87. The firm has a market cap of $40.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.10, a P/E/G ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 1.28.

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 analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.36 by ($0.40). Prudential Financial had a return on equity of 15.86% and a net margin of 4.01%. On average, analysts forecast that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 14.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Prudential Financial Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 13th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 18th were given a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.79%. This is a positive change from Prudential Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 18th. Prudential Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 72.29%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Prudential Financial

In other news, major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential acquired 52,595 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 25th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $28.52 per share, with a total value of $1,500,009.40. Following the completion of the purchase, the insider now owns 139,987 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,992,429.24. The trade was a 60.18 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Andrew F. Sullivan sold 6,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $105.98, for a total value of $635,880.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 27,072 shares in the company, valued at $2,869,090.56. The trade was a 18.14 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.31% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on PRU shares. UBS Group cut their price target on Prudential Financial from $130.00 to $122.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on Prudential Financial from $149.00 to $152.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Prudential Financial from $113.00 to $118.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Piper Sandler decreased their target price on shares of Prudential Financial from $124.00 to $122.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price target on shares of Prudential Financial from $129.00 to $125.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Prudential Financial presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $126.08.

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.