Mountain Pacific Investment Advisers LLC Increases Position in Prudential Financial, Inc. $PRU

Mountain Pacific Investment Advisers LLC increased its position in shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) by 17.9% during the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 2,640 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 400 shares during the period. Mountain Pacific Investment Advisers LLC’s holdings in Prudential Financial were worth $284,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its stake in shares of Prudential Financial by 3.7% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 3,681 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $436,000 after acquiring an additional 133 shares during the period. NBC Securities Inc. lifted its holdings in Prudential Financial by 116,300.0% in the 1st quarter. NBC Securities Inc. now owns 2,328 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $260,000 after purchasing an additional 2,326 shares in the last quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC boosted its stake in Prudential Financial by 59.4% in the 1st quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 10,566 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,180,000 after purchasing an additional 3,939 shares during the period. Whipplewood Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Prudential Financial by 2,210.6% during the 1st quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC now owns 1,086 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $121,000 after buying an additional 1,039 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Apella Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Prudential Financial in the first quarter worth $208,000. Institutional investors own 56.83% of the company’s stock.

Prudential Financial Stock Performance

NYSE:PRU opened at $103.08 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a current ratio of 0.16. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $105.26 and its 200 day moving average is $104.97. The firm has a market capitalization of $36.28 billion, a PE ratio of 22.86, a PEG ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 1.04. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $90.38 and a fifty-two week high of $130.55.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The financial services provider reported $3.58 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.22 by $0.36. The business had revenue of $13.50 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $13.47 billion. Prudential Financial had a net margin of 2.75% and a return on equity of 15.80%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $3.39 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 14.36 earnings per share for the current year.

Prudential Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 11th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 19th were given a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.2%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, August 19th. Prudential Financial’s payout ratio is 119.73%.

Insider Activity at Prudential Financial

In other news, EVP Ann M. Kappler sold 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $109.65, for a total value of $438,600.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 21,506 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,358,132.90. This represents a 15.68% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.25% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Piper Sandler cut their target price on shares of Prudential Financial from $109.00 to $108.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 16th. Barclays lifted their target price on Prudential Financial from $119.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Prudential Financial from $126.00 to $136.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on shares of Prudential Financial in a report on Tuesday, September 16th. They issued a “peer perform” rating for the company. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Prudential Financial from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 2nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $122.08.

Prudential Financial Company 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.