Signaturefd LLC Trims Stock Position in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU)

Signaturefd LLC reduced its position in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) by 3.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 10,817 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 430 shares during the period. Signaturefd LLC’s holdings in Prudential Financial were worth $1,122,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Morgan Stanley grew its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 0.9% during the third quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 6,317,338 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $599,452,000 after buying an additional 57,531 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp increased its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 4.8% in the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 4,353,086 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $413,064,000 after purchasing an additional 197,422 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Prudential Financial by 1.7% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,273,916 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $215,772,000 after purchasing an additional 38,229 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its position in Prudential Financial by 9,281.4% in the 4th quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 1,368,839 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $141,962,000 after buying an additional 1,354,248 shares during the last quarter. Finally, FMR LLC increased its stake in Prudential Financial by 2.9% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,315,215 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $124,801,000 after buying an additional 36,599 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 56.83% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

PRU has been the topic of several analyst reports. Piper Sandler lifted their target price on shares of Prudential Financial from $114.00 to $125.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, April 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $118.00 target price (down previously from $119.00) on shares of Prudential Financial in a research report on Wednesday, January 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Prudential Financial from $100.00 to $106.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on Prudential Financial from $112.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Prudential Financial from $108.00 to $112.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, February 12th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eleven have issued a hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Prudential Financial presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $111.33.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Ann M. Kappler sold 7,222 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $108.39, for a total transaction of $782,792.58. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 24,381 shares in the company, valued at $2,642,656.59. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other news, SVP Robert Axel sold 6,436 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $111.86, for a total transaction of $719,930.96. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 7,901 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $883,805.86. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Ann M. Kappler sold 7,222 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $108.39, for a total value of $782,792.58. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 24,381 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,642,656.59. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 29,255 shares of company stock worth $3,215,664. 0.34% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Prudential Financial Trading Up 0.8 %

Shares of Prudential Financial stock opened at $111.47 on Tuesday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $111.38 and a 200 day moving average price of $103.36. The company has a market capitalization of $40.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.66, a P/E/G ratio of 0.75 and a beta of 1.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 0.13 and a quick ratio of 0.13. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a 1 year low of $77.22 and a 1 year high of $118.69.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 6th. The financial services provider reported $2.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.67 by ($0.09). The company had revenue of $13.02 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $12.99 billion. Prudential Financial had a net margin of 4.89% and a return on equity of 14.52%. The firm’s revenue was up 6.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.42 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 13.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Prudential Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 14th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 20th were given a $1.30 dividend. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.66%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 16th. This is a positive change from Prudential Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.25. Prudential Financial’s payout ratio is currently 77.73%.

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.