Deutsche Bank AG Buys New Position in Prudential Financial, Inc. $PRU

Deutsche Bank AG purchased a new position in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) during the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund purchased 1,461,615 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $157,752,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of PRU. Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new position in Prudential Financial in the 2nd quarter worth $209,055,000. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership grew its holdings in Prudential Financial by 95.3% during the first quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 2,556,748 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $249,769,000 after purchasing an additional 1,247,371 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Prudential Financial in the fourth quarter worth about $140,530,000. Marshall Wace LLP raised its stake in shares of Prudential Financial by 230.3% in the fourth quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 1,374,966 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $155,206,000 after buying an additional 958,672 shares during the period. Finally, Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Prudential Financial during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $90,413,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 56.83% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Prudential Financial

In related news, major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential sold 214,746 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $24.75, for a total value of $5,314,963.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 7,973,657 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $197,348,010.75. This trade represents a 2.62% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Ann M. Kappler sold 7,652 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $125.01, for a total transaction of $956,576.52. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 14,407 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,801,019.07. The trade was a 34.69% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 0.05% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Prudential Financial Stock Down 1.9%

PRU opened at $122.21 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $42.16 billion, a PE ratio of 11.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 0.84. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $116.12 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $105.53. The company has a quick ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a 52 week low of $91.89 and a 52 week high of $127.72.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The financial services provider reported $4.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.52 by $0.56. The firm had revenue of $14.15 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.36 billion. Prudential Financial had a return on equity of 16.68% and a net margin of 6.51%.During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $3.58 earnings per share. Analysts forecast that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 14.17 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Prudential Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 25th will be paid a $1.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 25th. This represents a $5.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.6%. Prudential Financial’s payout ratio is presently 50.72%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have commented on PRU shares. Piper Sandler raised their target price on shares of Prudential Financial from $110.00 to $128.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 11th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Prudential Financial from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, June 12th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on shares of Prudential Financial from $113.00 to $123.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 11th. Argus downgraded shares of Prudential Financial from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 9th. Finally, Barclays increased their price target on Prudential Financial from $90.00 to $92.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and five have given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $108.31.

Prudential Financial Company Profile

Prudential Financial, Inc, headquartered in Newark, New Jersey, is a diversified financial services company with roots dating to 1875. The firm provides a range of insurance, retirement and investment products aimed at helping individual and institutional clients manage risk, accumulate and protect wealth, and plan for retirement. Prudential’s long history in life insurance and related financial services has positioned it as a major participant in the U.S. insurance market and a provider of services to a broad client base.

Prudential’s core business activities include individual life insurance, annuities, retirement solutions and group insurance products for employers.