7,418 Shares in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) Bought by BankPlus Trust Department

BankPlus Trust Department bought a new stake in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor bought 7,418 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $879,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in PRU. Grove Bank & Trust raised 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 valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 87 shares in the last quarter. Centricity Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Prudential Financial during the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Prudential Financial in the 3rd quarter valued at $31,000. CGC Financial Services LLC boosted its stake 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 acquiring an additional 124 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wingate Wealth Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of Prudential Financial in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $33,000. 56.83% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Prudential Financial Stock Down 1.5 %

PRU opened at $109.45 on Monday. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a twelve month low of $104.44 and a twelve month high of $130.55. The firm has a market cap of $39.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.65, a PEG ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 1.31. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $116.88 and its 200-day simple moving average is $119.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a current ratio of 0.16.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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%. Equities research analysts anticipate that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 14.36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Prudential Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 13th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be paid a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 18th. This is a positive change from Prudential Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.93%. Prudential Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 72.29%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently issued reports on PRU. Evercore ISI raised shares of Prudential Financial from an “underperform” rating to an “inline” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $117.00 to $140.00 in a report on Thursday, November 14th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price objective on 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. BMO Capital Markets initiated coverage on Prudential Financial in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. They set an “underperform” rating and a $101.00 target price on the stock. TD Cowen upped their price target on Prudential Financial from $130.00 to $133.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 27th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Prudential Financial from $113.00 to $118.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. One equities 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 given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $125.69.

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.