HighTower Advisors LLC Decreases Position in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU)

HighTower Advisors LLC lessened its holdings in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) by 5.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 65,857 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 3,685 shares during the period. HighTower Advisors LLC’s holdings in Prudential Financial were worth $7,806,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Grove Bank & Trust lifted its position in shares of Prudential Financial by 65.9% during the 4th quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 219 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 87 shares during the last quarter. Centricity Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Prudential Financial during the 4th quarter worth $29,000. CGC Financial Services LLC lifted its position in shares of Prudential Financial by 82.1% during the 4th quarter. CGC Financial Services LLC now owns 275 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 124 shares during the last quarter. Wingate Wealth Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Prudential Financial during the 4th quarter worth $33,000. Finally, Quarry LP lifted its position in shares of Prudential Financial by 376.3% during the 3rd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 281 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 222 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 56.83% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price objective on shares of Prudential Financial from $129.00 to $125.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of Prudential Financial from $136.00 to $128.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 28th. BMO Capital Markets initiated coverage on shares of Prudential Financial in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. They issued an “underperform” rating and a $101.00 price target for the company. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Prudential Financial from $113.00 to $118.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, TD Cowen boosted their price target on shares of Prudential Financial from $130.00 to $133.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 27th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $126.15.

Insider Transactions at Prudential Financial

In other news, EVP Andrew F. Sullivan sold 6,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $105.98, for a total transaction of $635,880.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 27,072 shares in the company, valued at $2,869,090.56. The trade was a 18.14 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential acquired 87,047 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $28.72 per share, for a total transaction of $2,499,989.84. Following the acquisition, the insider now owns 87,047 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,499,989.84. This represents a ∞ increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 0.31% of the company’s stock.

Prudential Financial Trading Up 1.7 %

NYSE PRU opened at $110.35 on Tuesday. 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 firm has a market cap of $39.50 billion, a PE ratio of 14.77, a P/E/G ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 1.28. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a one year low of $104.45 and a one year high of $130.55. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $114.15 and its two-hundred day moving average is $119.32.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The financial services provider reported $2.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.36 by ($0.40). Prudential Financial had a return on equity of 15.86% and a net margin of 4.01%. Analysts expect that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 14.36 earnings per share for the current year.

Prudential Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 13th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th were paid a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.89%. This is a positive change from Prudential Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 18th. Prudential Financial’s payout ratio is 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.