Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) Shares Sold by Douglas Lane & Associates LLC

Douglas Lane & Associates LLC reduced its stake in shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) by 30.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 378,589 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 167,537 shares during the quarter. Douglas Lane & Associates LLC’s holdings in Prudential Financial were worth $44,874,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of PRU. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new position in Prudential Financial in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $31,000. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC grew its position in Prudential Financial by 1,312.4% in the 2nd quarter. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC now owns 26,934 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 25,027 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP increased its stake in Prudential Financial by 376.3% during the 3rd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 281 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 222 shares during the period. Tompkins Financial Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 61.7% in the third quarter. Tompkins Financial Corp now owns 367 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $44,000 after acquiring an additional 140 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GHP Investment Advisors Inc. increased its stake in shares of Prudential Financial by 235.4% during the third quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 379 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $46,000 after acquiring an additional 266 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 56.83% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

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

Prudential Financial Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:PRU traded down $0.80 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $118.38. 496,893 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,012,735. The company has a market capitalization of $42.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.87 and a beta of 1.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60, a quick ratio of 0.14 and a current ratio of 0.14. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $122.90 and its 200-day simple moving average is $120.70. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a 1-year low of $100.60 and a 1-year high of $130.55.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The financial services provider reported $3.48 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.47 by $0.01. Prudential Financial had a return on equity of 15.30% and a net margin of 6.03%. The business had revenue of $19.48 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.57 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $3.44 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 13.35 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Prudential Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 12th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, November 19th were given a dividend of $1.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, November 19th. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.39%. Prudential Financial’s payout ratio is currently 46.22%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. TD Cowen raised their price objective on shares of Prudential Financial from $130.00 to $133.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 27th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on Prudential Financial from $149.00 to $152.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Barclays increased their price target on Prudential Financial from $119.00 to $129.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Prudential Financial from $116.00 to $117.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Finally, Evercore ISI raised shares of Prudential Financial from an “underperform” rating to an “inline” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $117.00 to $140.00 in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with 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 stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $127.17.

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.