Maridea Wealth Management LLC Makes New Investment in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU)

Maridea Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor purchased 1,747 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $207,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Prudential Financial during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $283,000. FMR LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 31.3% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,444,288 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $174,903,000 after acquiring an additional 344,254 shares during the period. Freedom Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Prudential Financial by 14.0% during the 3rd quarter. Freedom Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,478 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $421,000 after purchasing an additional 427 shares during the period. Glenmede Trust Co. NA lifted its holdings in Prudential Financial by 7.4% during the 3rd quarter. Glenmede Trust Co. NA now owns 17,968 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,176,000 after purchasing an additional 1,234 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fiduciary Trust Co bought a new position in Prudential Financial in the 3rd quarter worth about $252,000. 56.83% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential purchased 52,595 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 25th. The shares were bought at an average price of $28.52 per share, for a total transaction of $1,500,009.40. Following the purchase, the insider now directly owns 139,987 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,992,429.24. This represents a 60.18 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Andrew F. Sullivan sold 6,000 shares of the company’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 transaction, the executive vice president now owns 27,072 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,869,090.56. This represents a 18.14 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.31% of the company’s stock.

Prudential Financial Stock Performance

Shares of PRU stock opened at $109.94 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a current ratio of 0.16. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $104.45 and a fifty-two week high of $130.55. The company has a market capitalization of $39.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.72, a PEG ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 1.28. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $113.09 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $118.95.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The financial services provider reported $2.96 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.36 by ($0.40). Prudential Financial had a net margin of 4.01% and a return on equity of 15.86%. Analysts expect that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 14.36 earnings per share for the current year.

Prudential Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 13th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th were issued a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 18th. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.91%. This is a boost from Prudential Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. Prudential Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 72.29%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price objective on shares of Prudential Financial from $129.00 to $125.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Morgan Stanley reduced 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 research report on Friday, February 28th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Prudential Financial from $113.00 to $118.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Piper Sandler lowered their price target on Prudential Financial from $127.00 to $124.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on Prudential Financial from $149.00 to $152.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Prudential Financial currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $126.15.

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.