Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. Sells 5,038 Shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. $PRU

Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. cut its stake in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) by 9.6% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 47,211 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 5,038 shares during the quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co.’s holdings in Prudential Financial were worth $5,096,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp grew its position in Prudential Financial by 9.1% during the fourth quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp now owns 171,486 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $19,357,000 after buying an additional 14,327 shares in the last quarter. Oxbow Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Prudential Financial in the 4th quarter valued at about $6,545,000. Orca Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Prudential Financial in the 2nd quarter valued at about $2,605,000. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its position in shares of Prudential Financial by 4.2% during the 4th quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 735,934 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $83,801,000 after acquiring an additional 29,720 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Strs Ohio grew its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 128.6% during the fourth quarter. Strs Ohio now owns 19,389 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,189,000 after purchasing an additional 10,909 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 56.83% of the company’s stock.

Prudential Financial Trading Up 0.0%

Shares of PRU opened at $121.21 on Monday. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $91.89 and a fifty-two week high of $127.72. The firm has a market cap of $41.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.98, a PEG ratio of 2.29 and a beta of 0.84. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $116.66 and a 200-day moving average price of $105.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a current ratio of 0.16.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The financial services provider reported $4.08 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.52 by $0.56. The company had revenue of $14.15 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.36 billion. Prudential Financial had a net margin of 6.51% and a return on equity of 16.68%. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $3.58 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 14.24 earnings per share for the current year.

Prudential Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 25th will be paid a dividend of $1.40 per share. This represents a $5.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 25th. Prudential Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 50.72%.

Insider Activity

In related news, major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential sold 214,746 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.75, for a total transaction of $5,314,963.50. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 7,973,657 shares in the company, valued at $197,348,010.75. This trade represents a 2.62% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Ann M. Kappler sold 7,652 shares of Prudential Financial stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $125.01, for a total value of $956,576.52. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 14,407 shares in the company, valued at $1,801,019.07. This trade represents a 34.69% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 0.05% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on PRU. Mizuho raised their target price on shares of Prudential Financial from $101.00 to $109.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Prudential Financial from $129.00 to $131.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, August 17th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on shares of Prudential Financial from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, July 10th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Prudential Financial from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Thursday, July 16th. Finally, Argus lowered shares of Prudential Financial from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 9th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and five have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $108.31.

Prudential Financial 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.