Mizuho Securities USA LLC Cuts Stake in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU)

Mizuho Securities USA LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU - Free Report) by 16.4% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 23,150 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 4,531 shares during the quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC's holdings in Prudential Financial were worth $2,803,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. First Horizon Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in Prudential Financial by 4.3% during the 3rd quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 162,685 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $19,701,000 after purchasing an additional 6,641 shares during the last quarter. ORG Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Prudential Financial in the second quarter worth $156,000. PGGM Investments raised its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 98.0% in the second quarter. PGGM Investments now owns 64,277 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $7,533,000 after buying an additional 31,807 shares during the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC raised its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 49.5% in the first quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 80,148 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $9,409,000 after buying an additional 26,520 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Deerfield Management Company L.P. Series C acquired a new stake in shares of Prudential Financial in the second quarter worth $530,000. 56.83% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Prudential Financial

In related news, major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential acquired 261,059 shares of Prudential Financial stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 8th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $27.58 per share, for a total transaction of $7,200,007.22. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 4,208,549 shares of the company's stock, valued at $116,071,781.42. This represents a 6.61 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Caroline Feeney sold 1,110 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $119.97, for a total transaction of $133,166.70. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 10,175 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,220,694.75. This represents a 9.84 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.31% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on PRU shares. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Prudential Financial from $112.00 to $119.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 13th. Piper Sandler raised their price target on shares of Prudential Financial from $121.00 to $127.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Argus upgraded shares of Prudential Financial to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Prudential Financial from $118.00 to $119.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on shares of Prudential Financial from $123.00 to $122.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, August 19th. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Prudential Financial currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $125.69.

Prudential Financial Trading Up 1.3 %

PRU stock traded up $1.63 during trading on Friday, reaching $127.89. 1,117,397 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,751,253. The company has a current ratio of 0.14, a quick ratio of 0.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $123.30 and a 200-day moving average price of $119.70. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a 1 year low of $94.92 and a 1 year high of $129.13. The firm has a market capitalization of $45.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.37, a P/E/G ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 1.29.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The financial services provider reported $3.48 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.47 by $0.01. Prudential Financial had a net margin of 6.03% and a return on equity of 15.30%. The business had revenue of $19.48 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $14.57 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $3.44 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 13.33 earnings per share for the current year.

Prudential Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 12th. Investors of record on Tuesday, November 19th will be issued a $1.30 dividend. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.07%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 19th. Prudential Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 46.22%.

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.