SEB Asset Management AB Makes New $7.47 Million Investment in Prudential Financial, Inc. $PRU

SEB Asset Management AB acquired a new stake in shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) in the first quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm acquired 76,483 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $7,472,000.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. VCI Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 117.1% in the 4th quarter. VCI Wealth Management LLC now owns 19,292 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,178,000 after acquiring an additional 10,404 shares in the last quarter. KBC Group NV increased its holdings in Prudential Financial by 94.3% during the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 157,538 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $17,783,000 after purchasing an additional 76,461 shares in the last quarter. Munich Reinsurance Co Stock Corp in Munich raised its position in Prudential Financial by 2,669.0% in the 4th quarter. Munich Reinsurance Co Stock Corp in Munich now owns 46,990 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $5,342,000 after purchasing an additional 45,293 shares during the last quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp boosted its stake in Prudential Financial by 9.1% in 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 purchasing an additional 14,327 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Murphy Middleton Hinkle & Parker Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 846.7% during the fourth quarter. Murphy Middleton Hinkle & Parker Inc. now owns 25,921 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,926,000 after purchasing an additional 23,183 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 56.83% of the company’s stock.

Prudential Financial Price Performance

Prudential Financial stock opened at $118.47 on Wednesday. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $107.93 and its 200 day simple moving average is $104.18. The company has a quick ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58. The stock has a market cap of $41.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.19, a P/E/G ratio of 2.35 and a beta of 0.85. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a 12-month low of $91.89 and a 12-month high of $120.53.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 5th. The financial services provider reported $3.61 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.09 by $0.52. Prudential Financial had a return on equity of 16.33% and a net margin of 5.83%.The firm had revenue of $15.23 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.10 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $3.29 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 13.81 earnings per share for the current year.

Prudential Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 11th. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 26th were paid a dividend of $1.40 per share. This represents a $5.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, May 26th. Prudential Financial’s payout ratio is 57.61%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently issued reports on PRU. Zacks Research raised Prudential Financial from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, June 12th. BMO Capital Markets lowered their price objective on shares of Prudential Financial from $91.00 to $87.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 23rd. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “underweight” rating and issued a $92.00 target price (down from $106.00) on shares of Prudential Financial in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on shares of Prudential Financial from $106.00 to $113.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Monday, July 13th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Prudential Financial from $117.00 to $129.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and five have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Prudential Financial currently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average target price of $104.75.

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.