Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. Acquires 32,563 Shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU)

Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) by 6.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 555,533 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 32,563 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. owned 0.16% of Prudential Financial worth $66,186,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Savant Capital LLC boosted its position in shares of Prudential Financial by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Savant Capital LLC now owns 14,382 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,705,000 after buying an additional 83 shares during the period. Grove Bank & Trust grew its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 65.9% in the fourth 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. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC boosted its position in Prudential Financial by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC now owns 9,417 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,116,000 after buying an additional 91 shares during the period. Asset Dedication LLC increased its position in shares of Prudential Financial by 28.4% during the fourth quarter. Asset Dedication LLC now owns 420 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $50,000 after acquiring an additional 93 shares during the period. Finally, RNC Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 3.3% in the fourth quarter. RNC Capital Management LLC now owns 2,990 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $354,000 after purchasing an additional 95 shares during the period. 56.83% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Prudential Financial

In other Prudential Financial news, EVP Andrew F. Sullivan sold 6,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $105.98, for a total transaction of $635,880.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 27,072 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,869,090.56. This represents a 18.14 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential acquired 87,047 shares of Prudential Financial stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $28.72 per share, for a total transaction of $2,499,989.84. Following the purchase, the insider now directly owns 87,047 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,499,989.84. This trade 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.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

PRU has been the topic of several research reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price target on Prudential Financial from $129.00 to $125.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Piper Sandler cut their price objective on shares of Prudential Financial from $127.00 to $124.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 16th. BMO Capital Markets started coverage on Prudential Financial in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. They issued an “underperform” rating and a $101.00 price target on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on shares of Prudential Financial from $149.00 to $152.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, Barclays increased their price objective on Prudential Financial from $128.00 to $134.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Prudential Financial currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $126.15.

Prudential Financial Stock Down 3.9 %

Shares of NYSE:PRU opened at $109.94 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $113.09 and its 200 day moving average price is $118.92. The stock has a market cap of $39.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 1.28. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $104.45 and a fifty-two week high of $130.55.

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

Prudential Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 13th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 18th were issued a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.91%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 18th. This is a positive change from Prudential Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. Prudential Financial’s dividend payout ratio 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.