Envestnet Asset Management Inc. Buys 37,848 Shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU)

Envestnet Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU - Free Report) by 4.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 987,811 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 37,848 shares during the period. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. owned 0.28% of Prudential Financial worth $117,085,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in PRU. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Prudential Financial in the fourth quarter worth about $115,878,000. Nordea Investment Management AB increased its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 176.8% during the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 1,041,420 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $123,804,000 after acquiring an additional 665,180 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in Prudential Financial during the 4th quarter valued at about $76,303,000. Amundi increased its position in shares of Prudential Financial by 32.7% during the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 1,535,514 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $181,851,000 after acquiring an additional 378,266 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of 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 worth $1,047,872,000 after purchasing an additional 341,787 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 56.83% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently commented on PRU. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price target on shares of Prudential Financial from $125.00 to $120.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. Barclays lowered their target price on Prudential Financial from $134.00 to $106.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of Prudential Financial from $118.00 to $108.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday. Piper Sandler cut their price target on Prudential Financial from $124.00 to $122.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on shares of Prudential Financial from $136.00 to $128.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 28th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $122.77.

Prudential Financial Price Performance

PRU stock traded up $0.22 during trading on Friday, hitting $98.70. 2,635,405 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,596,498. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a 52 week low of $90.38 and a 52 week high of $130.55. The stock has a market capitalization 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. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $108.98 and a 200 day simple moving average of $117.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a current ratio of 0.16.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The financial services provider reported $2.96 EPS 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%. As a group, research analysts expect that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 14.36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Prudential Financial Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 13th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 18th were issued a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.47%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 18th. 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, EVP Andrew F. Sullivan sold 6,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the executive vice president now owns 27,072 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,869,090.56. This trade represents a 18.14 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential purchased 52,595 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 25th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $28.52 per share, for a total transaction of $1,500,009.40. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider now directly owns 139,987 shares in the company, valued at $3,992,429.24. The trade was a 60.18 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.31% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.