Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) Shares Bought by Whittier Trust Co.

Whittier Trust Co. grew its stake in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) by 8.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,140 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 314 shares during the period. Whittier Trust Co.’s holdings in Prudential Financial were worth $491,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Nordea Investment Management AB increased its stake in Prudential Financial by 176.8% in the 4th 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. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Prudential Financial in the fourth quarter valued at about $76,303,000. Amundi increased its stake in shares of Prudential Financial by 32.7% during the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 1,535,514 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $181,851,000 after acquiring an additional 378,266 shares during the period. FMR LLC lifted its position in Prudential Financial by 31.3% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,444,288 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $174,903,000 after purchasing an additional 344,254 shares during the period. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Prudential Financial by 4.1% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 8,662,679 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,047,872,000 after purchasing an additional 341,787 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 56.83% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

PRU has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. TD Cowen raised their price target on Prudential Financial from $130.00 to $133.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 27th. 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 research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of Prudential Financial from $136.00 to $128.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 28th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Prudential Financial from $113.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets assumed coverage on shares of Prudential Financial in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. They issued an “underperform” rating and a $101.00 target price for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Prudential Financial presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $126.15.

Insider Buying and Selling at Prudential Financial

In related news, major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential acquired 87,047 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was bought at an average price of $28.72 per share, with a total value of $2,499,989.84. Following the purchase, the insider now directly owns 87,047 shares in the company, valued at $2,499,989.84. The trade was a ∞ increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Andrew F. Sullivan sold 6,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $105.98, for a total transaction of $635,880.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 27,072 shares in the company, valued at $2,869,090.56. This represents a 18.14 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.31% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Prudential Financial Stock Performance

NYSE PRU opened at $110.35 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. The stock has a market cap of $39.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 1.28. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $104.45 and a fifty-two week high of $130.55. The business has a fifty day moving average of $113.57 and a 200-day moving average of $119.04.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The financial services provider reported $2.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.36 by ($0.40). Prudential Financial had a net margin of 4.01% and a return on equity of 15.86%. As a group, analysts predict that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 14.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Prudential Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 13th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th were paid a $1.35 dividend. This is a boost from Prudential Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.89%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 18th. Prudential Financial’s payout ratio is presently 72.29%.

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.