National Bank of Canada FI Raises Stake in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU)

National Bank of Canada FI lifted its position in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) by 1.5% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 158,770 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,399 shares during the quarter. National Bank of Canada FI’s holdings in Prudential Financial were worth $16,598,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Cambridge Trust Co. boosted its stake in shares of Prudential Financial by 77.2% in the fourth quarter. Cambridge Trust Co. now owns 241 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 105 shares during the period. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC purchased a new position in Prudential Financial in the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Headinvest LLC bought a new position in Prudential Financial in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $27,000. Arlington Trust Co LLC grew its holdings in Prudential Financial by 151.6% during the 4th quarter. Arlington Trust Co LLC now owns 307 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 185 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ritter Daniher Financial Advisory LLC DE bought a new stake in shares of Prudential Financial during the third quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 56.83% of the company’s stock.

Prudential Financial Trading Up 0.8 %

PRU opened at $116.23 on Wednesday. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a one year low of $77.87 and a one year high of $118.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a quick ratio of 0.13 and a current ratio of 0.13. The stock has a market cap of $41.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.77, a P/E/G ratio of 0.83 and a beta of 1.35. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $112.48 and its 200-day moving average price is $104.78.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The financial services provider reported $3.12 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.16 by ($0.04). The business had revenue of $15.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.50 billion. Prudential Financial had a return on equity of 15.50% and a net margin of 3.76%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 69.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.66 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 13.36 EPS for the current year.

Prudential Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 13th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 21st will be paid a $1.30 dividend. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.47%. Prudential Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 88.44%.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Timothy L. Schmidt sold 7,912 shares of Prudential Financial stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $108.13, for a total value of $855,524.56. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 14,754 shares in the company, valued at $1,595,350.02. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, SVP Timothy L. Schmidt sold 7,912 shares of Prudential Financial stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $108.13, for a total transaction of $855,524.56. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 14,754 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,595,350.02. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, SVP Robert Axel sold 6,436 shares of Prudential Financial stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $111.86, for a total value of $719,930.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 7,901 shares in the company, valued at $883,805.86. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 29,255 shares of company stock valued at $3,215,664. Corporate insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

PRU has been the topic of a number of research reports. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Prudential Financial from $108.00 to $112.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, February 12th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Prudential Financial from $109.00 to $117.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, April 15th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Prudential Financial from $100.00 to $106.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday, April 11th. Evercore ISI raised their target price on shares of Prudential Financial from $115.00 to $116.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Finally, TheStreet upgraded shares of Prudential Financial from a “c+” rating to an “a-” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 6th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eleven have given a hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $111.08.

Prudential Financial Company 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.