Ieq Capital LLC Sells 11,572 Shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU)

Ieq Capital LLC reduced its stake in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) by 54.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 9,611 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 11,572 shares during the period. Ieq Capital LLC’s holdings in Prudential Financial were worth $1,139,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. AMF Tjanstepension AB lifted its position in Prudential Financial by 12.5% during the third quarter. AMF Tjanstepension AB now owns 203,197 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $24,642,000 after purchasing an additional 22,588 shares during the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of Prudential Financial by 21.1% in the 3rd quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 29,489 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,563,000 after purchasing an additional 5,129 shares during the last quarter. NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC increased its position in Prudential Financial by 36.2% during the third quarter. NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC now owns 2,679 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $324,000 after acquiring an additional 712 shares during the last quarter. Arkadios Wealth Advisors raised its stake in shares of Prudential Financial by 8.0% in the third quarter. Arkadios Wealth Advisors now owns 5,423 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $657,000 after acquiring an additional 400 shares during the period. Finally, GHP Investment Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in Prudential Financial by 235.4% during the 3rd quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 379 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 266 shares during the last quarter. 56.83% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on PRU shares. TD Cowen boosted 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. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on shares of Prudential Financial from $149.00 to $152.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. BMO Capital Markets began coverage on Prudential Financial in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. They set an “underperform” rating and a $101.00 target price for the company. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Prudential Financial from $113.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, Piper Sandler cut their price target 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. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Prudential Financial currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $125.69.

Prudential Financial Price Performance

NYSE:PRU opened at $110.54 on Tuesday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $116.67 and a 200-day moving average price of $119.81. The firm has a market cap of $39.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 1.31. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a 1-year low of $104.44 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.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 net margin of 4.01% and a return on equity of 15.86%. Equities research analysts forecast that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 14.36 EPS for the current year.

Prudential Financial Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 13th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be given a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.89%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 18th. This is an increase from Prudential Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. Prudential Financial’s dividend payout ratio is 72.29%.

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.