Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) Holdings Raised by Y.D. More Investments Ltd

Y.D. More Investments Ltd raised its stake in shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) by 8.9% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 1,386 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 113 shares during the period. Y.D. More Investments Ltd’s holdings in Prudential Financial were worth $164,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in Prudential Financial by 4,130.8% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 1,298,257 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $157,219,000 after purchasing an additional 1,267,571 shares in the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its holdings 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 buying an additional 665,180 shares during the period. FMR LLC boosted its stake in Prudential Financial by 31.3% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,444,288 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $174,903,000 after buying an additional 344,254 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in 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 worth $1,047,872,000 after acquiring an additional 341,787 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Capital Advisors Inc. OK acquired a new stake in Prudential Financial in the 3rd quarter valued at about $30,226,000. 56.83% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Prudential Financial

In related news, major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential acquired 537,249 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 25th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $27.92 per share, with a total value of $14,999,992.08. Following the acquisition, the insider now owns 4,780,293 shares in the company, valued at approximately $133,465,780.56. The trade was a 12.66 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Prudential Financial Trading Down 3.4 %

Shares of NYSE:PRU opened at $113.90 on Thursday. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a 12-month low of $102.67 and a 12-month high of $130.55. The company has a quick ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 0.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. The firm has a market capitalization of $40.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 1.31. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $120.38 and a two-hundred day moving average of $120.46.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last issued its 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 6.03% and a return on equity of 15.30%. On average, equities analysts expect that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 13.24 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Prudential Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 13th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be paid a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 18th. This is a boost from Prudential Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.74%. Prudential Financial’s payout ratio is 46.22%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently commented on the stock. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Prudential Financial from $128.00 to $134.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on Prudential Financial from $117.00 to $115.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on Prudential Financial from $149.00 to $152.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. BMO Capital Markets began coverage on Prudential Financial in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. They set an “underperform” rating and a $101.00 target price for the company. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price target on Prudential Financial from $135.00 to $129.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $125.77.

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.