World Investment Advisors Purchases 6,220 Shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. $PRU

World Investment Advisors increased its position in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) by 104.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 12,164 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 6,220 shares during the quarter. World Investment Advisors’ holdings in Prudential Financial were worth $1,373,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in PRU. Jessup Wealth Management Inc bought a new position in Prudential Financial during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Garton & Associates Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Prudential Financial in the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Salomon & Ludwin LLC raised its position in shares of Prudential Financial by 98.3% in the fourth quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 230 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 114 shares during the period. Lodestone Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Prudential Financial during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Finally, Coston McIsaac & Partners lifted its stake in shares of Prudential Financial by 93.4% during the 4th quarter. Coston McIsaac & Partners now owns 265 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 128 shares in the last quarter. 56.83% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently weighed in on PRU. Argus lowered shares of Prudential Financial from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 9th. Mizuho increased their target price on Prudential Financial from $96.00 to $101.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Zacks Research upgraded Prudential Financial from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, June 12th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on Prudential Financial from $100.00 to $106.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 13th. Finally, Bank of America dropped their price objective on Prudential Financial from $112.00 to $104.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 14th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and five have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $101.50.

Prudential Financial Stock Performance

Prudential Financial stock opened at $106.86 on Friday. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a 1-year low of $91.89 and a 1-year high of $119.76. The company has a current ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58. The firm has a market capitalization of $37.08 billion, a PE ratio of 10.99, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 0.86. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $101.55 and its 200 day simple moving average is $104.34.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The financial services provider reported $3.61 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.09 by $0.52. The firm had revenue of $15.23 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.10 billion. Prudential Financial had a net margin of 5.83% and a return on equity of 16.33%. During the same period last year, the firm earned $3.29 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 13.78 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Prudential Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 11th. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 26th were given a $1.40 dividend. This represents a $5.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.2%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, May 26th. Prudential Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 57.61%.

About Prudential Financial

Prudential Financial, Inc, headquartered in Newark, New Jersey, is a diversified financial services company with roots dating to 1875. The firm provides a range of insurance, retirement and investment products aimed at helping individual and institutional clients manage risk, accumulate and protect wealth, and plan for retirement. Prudential’s long history in life insurance and related financial services has positioned it as a major participant in the U.S. insurance market and a provider of services to a broad client base.

Prudential’s core business activities include individual life insurance, annuities, retirement solutions and group insurance products for employers.