Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund Raises Holdings in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU)

Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund raised its position in shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU - Free Report) by 55.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 16,396 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 5,826 shares during the quarter. Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund's holdings in Prudential Financial were worth $1,943,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in PRU. Savant Capital LLC boosted its stake in shares of Prudential Financial by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. Savant Capital LLC now owns 14,382 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,705,000 after buying an additional 83 shares during the last quarter. Grove Bank & Trust boosted its stake in shares of Prudential Financial by 65.9% in the fourth quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 219 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 87 shares during the last quarter. Avidian Wealth Enterprises LLC boosted its stake in shares of Prudential Financial by 1.2% in the third quarter. Avidian Wealth Enterprises LLC now owns 7,357 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $891,000 after buying an additional 89 shares during the last quarter. Asset Dedication LLC raised its holdings in Prudential Financial by 28.4% in the 4th quarter. Asset Dedication LLC now owns 420 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $50,000 after purchasing an additional 93 shares during the period. Finally, RNC Capital Management LLC raised 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 purchasing an additional 95 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 56.83% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential purchased 537,249 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 25th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $27.92 per share, for a total transaction of $14,999,992.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 4,780,293 shares in the company, valued at approximately $133,465,780.56. This represents a 12.66 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.31% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the company. Piper Sandler reduced their price target on Prudential Financial from $127.00 to $124.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price target on Prudential Financial from $129.00 to $125.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. BMO Capital Markets assumed coverage on Prudential Financial in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. They issued an "underperform" rating and a $101.00 price target for the company. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on Prudential Financial from $149.00 to $152.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, Barclays increased their target price on Prudential Financial from $128.00 to $134.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $125.69.

Prudential Financial Price Performance

Shares of PRU stock traded down $1.68 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $109.45. The company had a trading volume of 1,575,421 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,697,518. 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 fifty day moving average of $117.10 and a 200-day moving average of $119.59. The company has a market capitalization of $39.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.65, a PEG ratio of 0.99 and a beta of 1.31. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a 12-month low of $104.44 and a 12-month high of $130.55.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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%. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 14.34 earnings per share for the current year.

Prudential Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 13th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be given a $1.35 dividend. 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. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 18th. Prudential Financial's dividend payout ratio is presently 72.29%.

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.