Plato Investment Management Ltd Takes Position in Prudential Financial, Inc. $PRU

Plato Investment Management Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 20,007 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $2,147,000.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Jessup Wealth Management Inc bought a new position in shares of Prudential Financial in the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Garton & Associates Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Prudential Financial during the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Salomon & Ludwin LLC lifted its holdings in Prudential Financial by 98.3% in the fourth quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 230 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 114 shares during the last quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. boosted its stake in Prudential Financial by 93.1% in the first quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 278 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 134 shares during the period. Finally, Coston McIsaac & Partners grew its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 93.4% during the fourth quarter. Coston McIsaac & Partners now owns 265 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 128 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 56.83% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently issued reports on PRU. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Prudential Financial from $129.00 to $131.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday. TD Cowen upped their price objective on Prudential Financial from $102.00 to $114.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. Mizuho increased their target price on Prudential Financial from $101.00 to $109.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. Argus cut Prudential Financial from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 9th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reissued an “underweight” rating and set a $92.00 price target (down from $106.00) on shares of Prudential Financial in a report on Monday, May 4th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and five have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Prudential Financial presently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and a consensus price target of $107.77.

Prudential Financial Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE PRU opened at $124.54 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $115.36 and a 200-day simple moving average of $105.33. The company has a market cap of $42.97 billion, a PE ratio of 11.28, a P/E/G ratio of 2.38 and a beta of 0.84. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a 12-month low of $91.89 and a 12-month high of $127.72.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 4th. The financial services provider reported $4.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.52 by $0.56. The business had revenue of $14.15 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.36 billion. Prudential Financial had a return on equity of 16.68% and a net margin of 6.51%.During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $3.58 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 14.17 EPS for the current year.

Prudential Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 25th will be paid a $1.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 25th. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.5%. Prudential Financial’s dividend payout ratio is presently 50.72%.

Insider Activity at Prudential Financial

In related news, major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential sold 214,746 shares of Prudential Financial stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $24.75, for a total transaction of $5,314,963.50. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 7,973,657 shares in the company, valued at $197,348,010.75. The trade was a 2.62% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.05% of the company’s stock.

Prudential Financial Company Profile

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.