Hardy Reed LLC Buys 98 Shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU)

Hardy Reed LLC increased its stake in shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) by 1.6% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 6,202 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 98 shares during the period. Hardy Reed LLC’s holdings in Prudential Financial were worth $751,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Prudential Financial by 4,130.8% in the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 1,298,257 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $157,219,000 after buying an additional 1,267,571 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Prudential Financial by 97.4% in the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 724,244 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $84,874,000 after acquiring an additional 357,300 shares during the period. FMR LLC grew its position in shares of Prudential Financial by 31.3% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,444,288 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $174,903,000 after purchasing an additional 344,254 shares in the last quarter. Swedbank AB bought a new position in Prudential Financial during the 1st quarter worth $35,855,000. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc raised its holdings in Prudential Financial by 9.4% in the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 3,542,400 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $415,134,000 after acquiring an additional 305,143 shares in the last quarter. 56.83% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently commented on PRU. UBS Group raised their price target on Prudential Financial from $112.00 to $119.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 13th. Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of Prudential Financial from $109.00 to $118.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. TD Cowen began coverage on shares of Prudential Financial in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $130.00 price objective on the stock. Barclays upped their target price on Prudential Financial from $118.00 to $119.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on Prudential Financial from $123.00 to $122.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, August 19th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $125.69.

Insider Activity at Prudential Financial

In related news, EVP Caroline Feeney sold 1,110 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $119.97, for a total value of $133,166.70. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 10,175 shares in the company, valued at $1,220,694.75. The trade was a 9.84 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential purchased 261,059 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 8th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $27.58 per share, for a total transaction of $7,200,007.22. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 4,208,549 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $116,071,781.42. The trade was a 6.61 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Prudential Financial Price Performance

Shares of PRU opened at $129.11 on Wednesday. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $123.72 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $119.89. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a 12-month low of $94.92 and a 12-month high of $129.69. The stock has a market cap of $45.96 billion, a PE ratio of 11.48, a PEG ratio of 0.91 and a beta of 1.29. The company has a quick ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 0.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The financial services provider reported $3.48 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.47 by $0.01. Prudential Financial had a net margin of 6.03% and a return on equity of 15.30%. The business had revenue of $19.48 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.57 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $3.44 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 13.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Prudential Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 12th. Investors of record on Tuesday, November 19th will be paid a $1.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 19th. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.03%. Prudential Financial’s dividend payout ratio is 46.22%.

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.