Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. Lowers Stock Holdings in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU)

Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. reduced its position in shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) by 3.5% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 109,152 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 3,996 shares during the period. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Prudential Financial were worth $12,792,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Prudential Financial by 13.9% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 42,292,853 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $4,386,192,000 after purchasing an additional 5,154,865 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its holdings in Prudential Financial by 10.8% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 4,000,665 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $414,926,000 after purchasing an additional 388,363 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Prudential Financial by 3.2% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,346,612 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $243,367,000 after purchasing an additional 72,696 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Prudential Financial in the fourth quarter valued at $113,478,000. Finally, Stifel Financial Corp boosted its holdings in Prudential Financial by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 1,003,558 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $104,080,000 after purchasing an additional 4,006 shares during the period. 56.83% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Prudential Financial

In related news, major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential purchased 652,884 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 20th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $27.57 per share, for a total transaction of $18,000,011.88. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 3,883,390 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $107,065,062.30. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, EVP Ann M. Kappler sold 2,839 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $113.43, for a total value of $322,027.77. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 14,535 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,648,705.05. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential acquired 652,884 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 20th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $27.57 per share, for a total transaction of $18,000,011.88. Following the acquisition, the insider now directly owns 3,883,390 shares in the company, valued at approximately $107,065,062.30. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.31% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

PRU has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Prudential Financial from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and set a $113.00 target price for the company in a report on Monday, August 12th. Piper Sandler decreased their price target on Prudential Financial from $125.00 to $121.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, May 6th. Citigroup lifted their price target on Prudential Financial from $104.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 23rd. UBS Group lifted their price target on Prudential Financial from $112.00 to $119.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 13th. Finally, Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on Prudential Financial from $123.00 to $122.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 19th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $119.33.

Prudential Financial Stock Performance

Shares of PRU traded down $0.09 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $117.92. 1,059,908 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,501,767. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $117.87 and its 200 day moving average price is $114.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 0.13 and a quick ratio of 0.13. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a twelve month low of $87.95 and a twelve month high of $128.52. The company has a market capitalization of $42.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.05, a PEG ratio of 0.89 and a beta of 1.34.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The financial services provider reported $3.39 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.43 by ($0.04). Prudential Financial had a return on equity of 16.00% and a net margin of 4.86%. The firm had revenue of $13.84 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $13.78 billion. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 13.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Prudential Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 12th. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 20th will be given a $1.30 dividend. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.41%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, August 20th. Prudential Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 88.44%.

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.