Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank Has $31.94 Million Holdings in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU)

Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank lessened its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) by 11.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 269,449 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 33,391 shares during the quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank owned approximately 0.08% of Prudential Financial worth $31,938,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in PRU. Nordea Investment Management AB grew its position in shares of Prudential Financial by 176.8% in the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 1,041,420 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $123,804,000 after purchasing an additional 665,180 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Prudential Financial in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $76,303,000. Amundi grew its position in shares of Prudential Financial by 32.7% in the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 1,535,514 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $181,851,000 after purchasing an additional 378,266 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC grew its position in shares of Prudential Financial by 31.3% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,444,288 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $174,903,000 after purchasing an additional 344,254 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Prudential Financial by 4.1% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 8,662,679 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,047,872,000 after purchasing an additional 341,787 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 56.83% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently commented on PRU shares. Evercore ISI raised Prudential Financial from an “underperform” rating to an “inline” rating and upped their target price for the company from $117.00 to $140.00 in a research report on Thursday, November 14th. TD Cowen boosted their price target on Prudential Financial from $130.00 to $133.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 27th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on Prudential Financial from $149.00 to $152.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. BMO Capital Markets assumed coverage on Prudential Financial in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. They issued an “underperform” rating and a $101.00 price target for the company. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target 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 research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $126.15.

Prudential Financial Stock Down 4.5 %

NYSE PRU opened at $106.28 on Tuesday. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $104.45 and a fifty-two week high of $130.55. The stock has a market capitalization of $38.05 billion, a PE ratio of 14.23, a PEG ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 1.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 0.16 and a quick ratio of 0.16. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $115.30 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $119.72.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The financial services provider reported $2.96 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%. Equities analysts expect that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 14.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Prudential Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared 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. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.08%. This is a boost from Prudential Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 18th. Prudential Financial’s dividend payout ratio is presently 72.29%.

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.