Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) Stake Raised by V Square Quantitative Management LLC

V Square Quantitative Management LLC raised its position in shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) by 5.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 9,898 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 467 shares during the quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC’s holdings in Prudential Financial were worth $1,173,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of PRU. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in Prudential Financial by 4,130.8% during the third 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 buying an additional 1,267,571 shares in the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB increased its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 176.8% in the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 1,041,420 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $123,804,000 after purchasing an additional 665,180 shares during the period. FMR LLC increased its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 31.3% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,444,288 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $174,903,000 after purchasing an additional 344,254 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 4.1% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 8,662,679 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,047,872,000 after purchasing an additional 341,787 shares during the period. Finally, Capital Advisors Inc. OK acquired a new position in shares of Prudential Financial in the 3rd quarter valued at about $30,226,000. 56.83% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Prudential Financial Stock Down 0.3 %

Shares of Prudential Financial stock opened at $111.54 on Friday. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $118.17 and its 200 day simple moving average is $119.95. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a 52-week low of $104.44 and a 52-week high of $130.55. The firm has a market cap of $39.71 billion, a PE ratio of 14.93, a P/E/G ratio of 1.00 and a beta of 1.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 0.14 and a current ratio of 0.16.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The financial services provider reported $2.96 earnings per share 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%. On average, analysts predict that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 14.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Prudential Financial Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 13th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be given a dividend of $1.35 per share. This is a positive change from Prudential Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 18th. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.84%. Prudential Financial’s payout ratio is 69.61%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on PRU shares. Barclays upped their target price on Prudential Financial from $128.00 to $134.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. TD Cowen upped their target price on Prudential Financial from $130.00 to $133.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 27th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Prudential Financial from $117.00 to $115.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on Prudential Financial from $149.00 to $152.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, Evercore ISI raised Prudential Financial from an “underperform” rating to an “inline” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $117.00 to $140.00 in a research report on Thursday, November 14th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $125.46.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Prudential Financial 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 acquired at an average cost of $27.92 per share, with a total value of $14,999,992.08. Following the acquisition, the insider now owns 4,780,293 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $133,465,780.56. The trade was a 12.66 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.31% of the company’s stock.

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.