Principal Financial Group Inc. Reduces Stake in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU)

Principal Financial Group Inc. lessened its holdings in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU - Free Report) by 1.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 412,229 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 7,504 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned approximately 0.12% of Prudential Financial worth $48,862,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Prudential Financial by 4,130.8% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 1,298,257 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $157,219,000 after acquiring an additional 1,267,571 shares during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its holdings in Prudential Financial by 176.8% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 1,041,420 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $123,804,000 after buying an additional 665,180 shares during the period. FMR LLC raised its position in shares of Prudential Financial by 31.3% during 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 last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Prudential Financial by 4.1% in the third 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 acquiring an additional 341,787 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Capital Advisors Inc. OK acquired a new stake in Prudential Financial during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $30,226,000. 56.83% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price target on shares of Prudential Financial from $129.00 to $125.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Prudential Financial from $113.00 to $118.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Wednesday. BMO Capital Markets began coverage on Prudential Financial in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. They issued an "underperform" rating and a $101.00 price objective for the company. Barclays upped their target price on Prudential Financial from $128.00 to $134.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, Piper Sandler lowered their target price on Prudential Financial from $127.00 to $124.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 16th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Prudential Financial presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $125.69.

Prudential Financial Stock Down 1.5 %

NYSE PRU traded down $1.68 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $109.45. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,575,421 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,697,518. The company has a current ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $117.10 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $119.59. The company has a market capitalization of $39.18 billion, a PE ratio of 14.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.99 and a beta of 1.31. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a 52 week low of $104.44 and a 52 week high of $130.55.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The financial services provider reported $2.96 earnings per share 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%. Research analysts anticipate that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 14.34 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Prudential Financial Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 13th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be given a dividend of $1.35 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 18th. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.93%. This is a positive change from Prudential Financial's previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. Prudential Financial's dividend payout ratio is presently 72.29%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential acquired 537,249 shares of Prudential Financial stock in a transaction on Monday, November 25th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $27.92 per share, with a total value of $14,999,992.08. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider now owns 4,780,293 shares in the company, valued at approximately $133,465,780.56. This trade represents a 12.66 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.31% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Prudential Financial Company Profile

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.