Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. Cuts Holdings in Prudential Financial, Inc. $PRU

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. decreased its stake in shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) by 9.3% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 808,786 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 82,458 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc.’s holdings in Prudential Financial were worth $91,296,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Summit Global Investments increased its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 71.1% in the 3rd quarter. Summit Global Investments now owns 13,021 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,351,000 after acquiring an additional 5,412 shares during the last quarter. Machina Capital S.A.S. purchased a new position in shares of Prudential Financial in the 3rd quarter valued at about $1,285,000. Mattson Financial Services LLC increased its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 312.8% in the 3rd quarter. Mattson Financial Services LLC now owns 12,119 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,257,000 after acquiring an additional 9,183 shares during the last quarter. First Horizon Corp purchased a new position in shares of Prudential Financial in the 3rd quarter valued at about $5,856,000. Finally, Varma Mutual Pension Insurance Co increased its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 22.0% in the 3rd quarter. Varma Mutual Pension Insurance Co now owns 108,839 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $11,291,000 after acquiring an additional 19,600 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 56.83% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Thomas D. Stoddard acquired 250 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 17th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $102.97 per share, with a total value of $25,742.50. Following the transaction, the director owned 250 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $25,742.50. The trade was a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Jacques Chappuis acquired 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 6th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $100.97 per share, with a total value of $100,970.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 1,000 shares in the company, valued at $100,970. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Insiders purchased a total of 1,408,389 shares of company stock valued at $35,154,439 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.05% of the company’s stock.

Prudential Financial Stock Up 1.5%

Shares of NYSE PRU opened at $98.40 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $34.23 billion, a PE ratio of 9.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.20 and a beta of 0.95. The company has a quick ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a 52-week low of $91.89 and a 52-week high of $119.76. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $98.50 and a 200 day moving average price of $105.07.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 3rd. The financial services provider reported $3.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.37 by ($0.07). The firm had revenue of $14.52 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.48 billion. Prudential Financial had a net margin of 6.20% and a return on equity of 16.32%. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.96 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 14.36 earnings per share for the current year.

Prudential Financial Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 12th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 17th were given a dividend of $1.40 per share. This represents a $5.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 17th. This is a positive change from Prudential Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.35. Prudential Financial’s payout ratio is 56.00%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the company. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on Prudential Financial from $103.00 to $95.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday. Mizuho dropped their price objective on Prudential Financial from $113.00 to $101.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on Prudential Financial from $120.00 to $111.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, March 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on Prudential Financial from $133.00 to $127.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 4th. Finally, Evercore reissued a “negative” rating on shares of Prudential Financial in a research report on Friday, March 6th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average target price of $108.44.

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.