Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) Shares Purchased by Benjamin Edwards Inc.

Benjamin Edwards Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU - Free Report) by 1,843.0% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 26,794 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 25,415 shares during the quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc.'s holdings in Prudential Financial were worth $3,246,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in PRU. Mather Group LLC. increased its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 67.1% during the 2nd quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 1,133 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $133,000 after buying an additional 455 shares during the last quarter. Kingswood Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 24.2% during the 2nd quarter. Kingswood Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 4,745 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $556,000 after buying an additional 924 shares during the last quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC increased its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 1.4% during the 2nd quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 7,424 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $870,000 after buying an additional 103 shares during the last quarter. CWM LLC increased its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 13.3% during the 2nd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 13,036 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,528,000 after buying an additional 1,527 shares during the last quarter. Finally, OLD National Bancorp IN increased its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 1.7% during the 2nd quarter. OLD National Bancorp IN now owns 5,941 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $696,000 after buying an additional 98 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 56.83% of the company's stock.

Prudential Financial Stock Up 1.1 %

Shares of PRU stock traded up $1.41 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $127.31. 1,578,027 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,494,635. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60, a quick ratio of 0.14 and a current ratio of 0.14. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $124.67 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $120.26. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a one year low of $97.76 and a one year high of $130.55. The stock has a market capitalization of $45.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.19, a P/E/G ratio of 0.91 and a beta of 1.29.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The financial services provider reported $3.48 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.47 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $19.48 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $14.57 billion. Prudential Financial had a net margin of 6.03% and a return on equity of 15.30%. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $3.44 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 13.35 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Prudential Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 12th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, November 19th will be issued a dividend of $1.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 19th. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.08%. Prudential Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 46.22%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

PRU has been the subject of several recent research reports. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Prudential Financial from $116.00 to $117.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on Prudential Financial from $123.00 to $122.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 19th. Argus upgraded Prudential Financial to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Thursday, August 8th. TD Cowen increased 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. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reiterated a "market perform" rating and issued a $121.00 price target on shares of Prudential Financial in a report on Wednesday, August 21st. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $125.92.

Insider Activity at Prudential Financial

In related news, major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential acquired 537,249 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 25th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $27.92 per share, for a total transaction of $14,999,992.08. Following the completion of the purchase, the insider now directly owns 4,780,293 shares of the company's stock, valued at $133,465,780.56. The trade was a 12.66 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.31% of the company's stock.

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.