Sompo Asset Management Co. Ltd. Decreases Stock Position in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU)

Sompo Asset Management Co. Ltd. decreased its position in shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU - Free Report) by 26.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 11,670 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 4,160 shares during the period. Sompo Asset Management Co. Ltd.'s holdings in Prudential Financial were worth $1,383,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Grove Bank & Trust raised its position in 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 purchasing an additional 87 shares during the period. Centricity Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Prudential Financial in the fourth quarter worth approximately $29,000. CGC Financial Services LLC boosted its holdings in Prudential Financial by 82.1% during the 4th quarter. CGC Financial Services LLC now owns 275 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 124 shares during the period. Wingate Wealth Advisors Inc. bought a new position in Prudential Financial in the 4th quarter valued at $33,000. Finally, Hopwood Financial Services Inc. purchased a new stake in Prudential Financial in the fourth quarter worth $34,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 56.83% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at Prudential Financial

In related news, major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential acquired 52,595 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 25th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $28.52 per share, for a total transaction of $1,500,009.40. Following the purchase, the insider now owns 139,987 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,992,429.24. This represents a 60.18 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Andrew F. Sullivan sold 6,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $105.98, for a total value of $635,880.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 27,072 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,869,090.56. This represents a 18.14 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.25% of the company's stock.

Prudential Financial Trading Up 3.4 %

Shares of PRU stock opened at $100.16 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 0.16 and a quick ratio of 0.16. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $107.17 and a 200-day simple moving average of $116.56. The company has a market cap of $35.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.41, a PEG ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 1.11. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a 1-year low of $90.38 and a 1-year high of $130.55.

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

Prudential Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed 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 5.39%. Prudential Financial's dividend payout ratio is currently 72.29%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

PRU has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of Prudential Financial from $134.00 to $106.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 11th. UBS Group cut their price target on Prudential Financial from $130.00 to $122.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of Prudential Financial from $118.00 to $108.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 10th. 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 report on Wednesday, April 9th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on shares of Prudential Financial from $128.00 to $126.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. 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.com, Prudential Financial has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $121.85.

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.

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