B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG Decreases Stake in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU)

B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG cut its stake in shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU - Free Report) by 31.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 16,299 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 7,453 shares during the period. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG's holdings in Prudential Financial were worth $1,932,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Grove Bank & Trust increased its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 65.9% in the 4th 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. Centricity Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Prudential Financial during the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. CGC Financial Services LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 82.1% in the 4th quarter. CGC Financial Services LLC now owns 275 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 124 shares in the last quarter. Wingate Wealth Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of Prudential Financial during the 4th quarter valued at about $33,000. Finally, Quarry LP raised its stake in shares of Prudential Financial by 376.3% during the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 281 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 222 shares in the last quarter. 56.83% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have weighed in on PRU. Piper Sandler lowered their price target on shares of Prudential Financial from $124.00 to $122.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Prudential Financial from $113.00 to $118.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their target price on Prudential Financial from $129.00 to $125.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on shares of Prudential Financial from $149.00 to $152.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, Barclays boosted their price target on Prudential Financial from $128.00 to $134.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $126.08.

Prudential Financial Stock Performance

NYSE PRU traded down $1.68 on Monday, hitting $94.85. 1,237,989 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,560,575. The business's 50 day moving average price is $112.03 and its 200-day moving average price is $118.62. The company has a market capitalization of $33.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.72, a P/E/G ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 1.11. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a 52-week low of $87.90 and a 52-week high of $130.55. The company has a current ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The financial services provider reported $2.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $3.36 by ($0.40). Prudential Financial had a return on equity of 15.86% and a net margin of 4.01%. Equities analysts expect that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 14.36 earnings per share for the current year.

Prudential Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 13th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 18th were issued a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 18th. This is a boost from Prudential Financial's previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.69%. Prudential Financial's payout ratio is currently 72.29%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Prudential Financial

In other news, EVP Andrew F. Sullivan sold 6,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $105.98, for a total transaction of $635,880.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 27,072 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,869,090.56. This represents a 18.14 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential bought 52,595 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 25th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $28.52 per share, for a total transaction of $1,500,009.40. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 139,987 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,992,429.24. The trade was a 60.18 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 0.31% of the company's stock.

Prudential Financial 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.