Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) Shares Sold by Bessemer Group Inc.

Bessemer Group Inc. reduced its holdings in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU - Free Report) by 1.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 927,204 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 13,552 shares during the period. Bessemer Group Inc. owned about 0.26% of Prudential Financial worth $109,901,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Savant Capital LLC increased its holdings in Prudential Financial by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. Savant Capital LLC now owns 14,382 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,705,000 after acquiring an additional 83 shares in the last quarter. Grove Bank & Trust increased its stake in shares of Prudential Financial by 65.9% during the fourth quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 219 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 87 shares in the last quarter. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC raised its position in shares of Prudential Financial by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC now owns 9,417 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,116,000 after purchasing an additional 91 shares during the last quarter. Asset Dedication LLC lifted its stake in Prudential Financial by 28.4% in the 4th quarter. Asset Dedication LLC now owns 420 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $50,000 after buying an additional 93 shares in the last quarter. Finally, RNC Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Prudential Financial by 3.3% in the 4th quarter. RNC Capital Management LLC now owns 2,990 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $354,000 after buying an additional 95 shares during the last quarter. 56.83% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Remove Ads

Insider Transactions at Prudential Financial

In other Prudential Financial news, EVP Andrew F. Sullivan sold 6,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $105.98, for a total value of $635,880.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 27,072 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,869,090.56. This trade represents a 18.14 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential acquired 52,595 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 25th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $28.52 per share, for a total transaction of $1,500,009.40. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 139,987 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,992,429.24. This trade represents a 60.18 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 0.31% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on PRU. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on Prudential Financial from $118.00 to $108.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday. BMO Capital Markets began coverage on shares of Prudential Financial in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. They set an "underperform" rating and a $101.00 target price on the stock. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price 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. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of Prudential Financial from $134.00 to $106.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their target price on shares of Prudential Financial from $125.00 to $120.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $122.77.

Prudential Financial Trading Up 0.2 %

Shares of Prudential Financial stock traded up $0.22 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $98.70. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,635,405 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,596,498. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $108.98 and a 200-day moving average of $117.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a current ratio of 0.16. The stock has a market cap of $34.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.21, a P/E/G ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 1.11. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a twelve month low of $90.38 and a twelve month high of $130.55.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU - Get Free Report) last announced its 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 return on equity of 15.86% and a net margin of 4.01%. Research analysts forecast that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 14.36 EPS for the current 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 given a $1.35 dividend. This is a positive change from Prudential Financial's previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 18th. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.47%. 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.