OFI Invest Asset Management Takes Position in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU)

OFI Invest Asset Management bought a new stake in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm bought 1,572 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $180,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Grove Bank & Trust grew its position in Prudential Financial by 65.9% during the fourth quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 219 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 87 shares in the last quarter. Centricity Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Prudential Financial during the fourth quarter worth approximately $29,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new stake in Prudential Financial during the third quarter worth approximately $31,000. CGC Financial Services LLC grew its position in Prudential Financial by 82.1% during the fourth quarter. CGC Financial Services LLC now owns 275 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 124 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wingate Wealth Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in Prudential Financial during the fourth quarter worth approximately $33,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 56.83% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on PRU. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price target on Prudential Financial from $129.00 to $125.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Prudential Financial from $113.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. TD Cowen raised their target price on Prudential Financial from $130.00 to $133.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 27th. Evercore ISI raised Prudential Financial from an “underperform” rating to an “inline” rating and raised their target price for the company from $117.00 to $140.00 in a report on Thursday, November 14th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets assumed coverage on Prudential Financial in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. They issued an “underperform” rating and a $101.00 target price on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Prudential Financial presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $126.15.

Prudential Financial Stock Down 4.5 %

Shares of PRU opened at $106.28 on Tuesday. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a 52 week low of $104.45 and a 52 week high of $130.55. The stock has a market capitalization of $38.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.23, a PEG ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 1.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a current ratio of 0.16. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $115.30 and a 200-day moving average of $119.72.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last announced its quarterly 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 net margin of 4.01% and a return on equity of 15.86%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 14.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Prudential Financial Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced 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 is a positive change from Prudential Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.08%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 18th. Prudential Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 72.29%.

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.