SFE Investment Counsel Grows Position in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU)

SFE Investment Counsel increased its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) by 1.8% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 50,173 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 904 shares during the quarter. SFE Investment Counsel’s holdings in Prudential Financial were worth $6,076,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in Prudential Financial by 4,130.8% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 1,298,257 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $157,219,000 after purchasing an additional 1,267,571 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Prudential Financial by 97.4% in the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 724,244 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $84,874,000 after buying an additional 357,300 shares in the last quarter. Swedbank AB purchased a new stake in shares of Prudential Financial during the 1st quarter valued at about $35,855,000. Legal & General Group Plc boosted its holdings in Prudential Financial by 9.4% in the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 3,542,400 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $415,134,000 after acquiring an additional 305,143 shares during the period. Finally, OFI Invest Asset Management grew its position in Prudential Financial by 10,529.7% in the second quarter. OFI Invest Asset Management now owns 155,513 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $17,004,000 after acquiring an additional 154,050 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 56.83% of the company’s stock.

Prudential Financial Trading Up 1.7 %

NYSE PRU opened at $125.60 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $44.84 billion, a PE ratio of 16.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 1.30. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a one year low of $89.09 and a one year high of $128.52. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $120.39 and a 200-day simple moving average of $117.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 0.13 and a current ratio of 0.13.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The financial services provider reported $3.39 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.43 by ($0.04). Prudential Financial had a return on equity of 16.00% and a net margin of 4.86%. The company had revenue of $13.84 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $13.78 billion. On average, equities analysts forecast that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 13.3 earnings per share for the current year.

Prudential Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 12th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 20th were issued a dividend of $1.30 per share. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.14%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, August 20th. Prudential Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 66.84%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Bank of America upped their target price on shares of Prudential Financial from $109.00 to $118.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Argus upgraded Prudential Financial to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. Citigroup boosted their price target on Prudential Financial from $104.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd. Piper Sandler raised their price objective on Prudential Financial from $121.00 to $127.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and issued a $121.00 target price on shares of Prudential Financial in a research report on Wednesday, August 21st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Prudential Financial presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $123.69.

Insider Transactions at Prudential Financial

In other news, major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential bought 261,059 shares of Prudential Financial stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 8th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $27.58 per share, with a total value of $7,200,007.22. Following the purchase, the insider now directly owns 4,208,549 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $116,071,781.42. This trade represents a 0.00 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other news, EVP Ann M. Kappler sold 2,839 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $113.43, for a total transaction of $322,027.77. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 14,535 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,648,705.05. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential acquired 261,059 shares of Prudential Financial stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 8th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $27.58 per share, with a total value of $7,200,007.22. Following the acquisition, the insider now directly owns 4,208,549 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $116,071,781.42. This trade represents a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

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.