Empirical Finance LLC Has $1.49 Million Holdings in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU)

Empirical Finance LLC trimmed its stake in shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) by 1.4% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 12,549 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 175 shares during the period. Empirical Finance LLC’s holdings in Prudential Financial were worth $1,487,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the stock. Grove Bank & Trust boosted 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 valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 87 shares during the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new stake in Prudential Financial in the third quarter worth about $31,000. CGC Financial Services LLC raised 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 worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 124 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP boosted its stake in shares of Prudential Financial by 376.3% in the 3rd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 281 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 222 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Prudential Financial during the 4th quarter worth approximately $37,000. 56.83% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on PRU shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price objective on shares of Prudential Financial from $135.00 to $129.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on Prudential Financial from $117.00 to $115.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Barclays raised their target price on Prudential Financial from $128.00 to $134.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Piper Sandler cut their price target on shares of Prudential Financial from $127.00 to $124.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on shares of Prudential Financial from $149.00 to $152.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $125.77.

Insider Activity at Prudential Financial

In related news, major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential purchased 537,249 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 25th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $27.92 per share, for a total transaction of $14,999,992.08. Following the completion of the purchase, the insider now directly owns 4,780,293 shares in the company, valued at $133,465,780.56. This trade represents a 12.66 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.31% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Prudential Financial Trading Down 0.6 %

PRU opened at $112.80 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $40.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.10, a P/E/G ratio of 1.00 and a beta of 1.31. The company has a current ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 0.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a 12 month low of $104.02 and a 12 month high of $130.55. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $119.41 and its 200 day simple moving average is $120.26.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The financial services provider reported $2.96 earnings per share 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 anticipate that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 14.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Prudential Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 13th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be given a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.79%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 18th. This is a positive change from Prudential Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. Prudential Financial’s payout ratio is currently 72.29%.

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.