Garden State Investment Advisory Services LLC Cuts Stake in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU)

Garden State Investment Advisory Services LLC lessened its stake in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) by 12.7% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 2,089 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 305 shares during the quarter. Garden State Investment Advisory Services LLC’s holdings in Prudential Financial were worth $253,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 0.3% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 17,007,013 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,059,549,000 after purchasing an additional 49,830 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Prudential Financial by 4.1% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 8,662,679 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,047,872,000 after buying an additional 341,787 shares in the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc boosted its stake in Prudential Financial by 9.4% during the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 3,542,400 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $415,134,000 after buying an additional 305,143 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its holdings in Prudential Financial by 1.6% during the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 3,058,028 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $370,327,000 after buying an additional 47,561 shares in the last quarter. Finally, FMR LLC increased its stake in Prudential Financial by 31.3% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,444,288 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $174,903,000 after acquiring an additional 344,254 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 56.83% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

PRU has been the subject of several research reports. Piper Sandler increased their price objective on shares of Prudential Financial from $121.00 to $127.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods restated a “market perform” rating and set a $121.00 price objective on shares of Prudential Financial in a research report on Wednesday, August 21st. Bank of America raised their price objective on Prudential Financial from $109.00 to $118.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on Prudential Financial from $123.00 to $122.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, August 19th. Finally, Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Prudential Financial from $118.00 to $119.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Prudential Financial presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $126.33.

Insider Activity

In related news, major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential purchased 537,249 shares of Prudential Financial stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 25th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $27.92 per share, with a total value of $14,999,992.08. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 4,780,293 shares in the company, valued at approximately $133,465,780.56. The trade was a 12.66 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.31% of the company’s stock.

Prudential Financial Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:PRU opened at $120.48 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60, a quick ratio of 0.14 and a current ratio of 0.14. The firm has a market cap of $42.89 billion, a PE ratio of 10.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.86 and a beta of 1.29. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $124.99 and its 200-day simple moving average is $120.45. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a one year low of $100.60 and a one year high of $130.55.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The financial services provider reported $3.48 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.47 by $0.01. Prudential Financial had a return on equity of 15.30% and a net margin of 6.03%. The business had revenue of $19.48 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.57 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $3.44 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 13.35 EPS for the current year.

Prudential Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 12th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, November 19th were given a $1.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, November 19th. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.32%. Prudential Financial’s payout ratio is presently 46.22%.

About Prudential Financial

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.