Handelsbanken Fonder AB Lowers Holdings in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU)

Handelsbanken Fonder AB reduced its position in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) by 21.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 98,292 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 27,486 shares during the period. Handelsbanken Fonder AB’s holdings in Prudential Financial were worth $10,194,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in PRU. Oak Thistle LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Prudential Financial in the third quarter worth about $569,000. Czech National Bank raised its position in Prudential Financial by 46.8% during the third quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 63,444 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $6,020,000 after purchasing an additional 20,235 shares during the period. MBM Wealth Consultants LLC raised its position in Prudential Financial by 5.1% during the third quarter. MBM Wealth Consultants LLC now owns 3,072 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $288,000 after purchasing an additional 149 shares during the period. Verity & Verity LLC raised its position in Prudential Financial by 22.3% during the third quarter. Verity & Verity LLC now owns 173,400 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $16,440,000 after purchasing an additional 31,641 shares during the period. Finally, McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. raised its position in Prudential Financial by 6.0% during the third quarter. McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. now owns 4,551 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $432,000 after purchasing an additional 258 shares during the period. 56.83% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have issued reports on PRU. JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated a “neutral” rating and set a $118.00 price objective (down from $119.00) on shares of Prudential Financial in a research report on Wednesday, January 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Prudential Financial from $100.00 to $106.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Piper Sandler upped their target price on Prudential Financial from $114.00 to $125.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, April 5th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on Prudential Financial from $112.00 to $118.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their target price on Prudential Financial from $104.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eleven have issued a hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Prudential Financial presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $111.33.

Prudential Financial Stock Performance

Shares of PRU opened at $112.76 on Thursday. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a 12 month low of $77.22 and a 12 month high of $118.69. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $111.65 and a 200-day moving average price of $103.56. The company has a current ratio of 0.13, a quick ratio of 0.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. The firm has a market cap of $40.48 billion, a PE ratio of 16.86, a P/E/G ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 1.37.

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

Prudential Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 14th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 20th were issued a dividend of $1.30 per share. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.61%. 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 dividend payout ratio is currently 77.73%.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Robert Axel sold 6,436 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $111.86, for a total value of $719,930.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 7,901 shares in the company, valued at approximately $883,805.86. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, SVP Robert Axel sold 6,436 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $111.86, for a total value of $719,930.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 7,901 shares in the company, valued at approximately $883,805.86. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Ann M. Kappler sold 7,222 shares of the firm’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 completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 24,381 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,642,656.59. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 29,255 shares of company stock worth $3,215,664. 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.