Prudential Financial, Inc. $PRU Shares Acquired by Richard W. Paul & Associates LLC

Richard W. Paul & Associates LLC boosted its stake in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) by 15.7% during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 5,837 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 790 shares during the quarter. Richard W. Paul & Associates LLC’s holdings in Prudential Financial were worth $627,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Meeder Asset Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Prudential Financial by 90.2% in the first quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 234 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 111 shares during the period. Cheviot Value Management LLC purchased a new position in Prudential Financial in the 1st quarter valued at about $26,000. AlphaQuest LLC boosted its holdings in Prudential Financial by 12,250.0% in the 1st quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 247 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 245 shares during the last quarter. Clearstead Trust LLC increased its stake in Prudential Financial by 350.8% during the 1st quarter. Clearstead Trust LLC now owns 266 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 207 shares in the last quarter. Finally, AlphaCore Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Prudential Financial during the second quarter valued at approximately $39,000. 56.83% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Prudential Financial

In other news, EVP Ann M. Kappler sold 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, August 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $109.65, for a total transaction of $438,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 21,506 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,358,132.90. This represents a 15.68% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Chairman Charles F. Lowrey sold 48,164 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $107.39, for a total value of $5,172,331.96. Following the sale, the chairman directly owned 165,564 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $17,779,917.96. The trade was a 22.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Corporate insiders own 0.25% of the company’s stock.

Prudential Financial Trading Up 2.6%

Shares of PRU opened at $106.83 on Friday. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a 12-month low of $90.38 and a 12-month high of $130.55. The firm has a market capitalization of $37.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.67, a P/E/G ratio of 0.88 and a beta of 1.05. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $103.49 and a 200 day moving average price of $104.72. The company has a current ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 15th. The financial services provider reported $3.58 EPS for the quarter. Prudential Financial had a net margin of 4.65% and a return on equity of 16.98%. The company had revenue of $8.35 billion for the quarter. Sell-side analysts forecast that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 14.36 EPS for the current year.

Prudential Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 11th. Investors of record on Tuesday, November 18th will be issued a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 18th. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.1%. Prudential Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 74.18%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on PRU. Barclays lowered their price target on Prudential Financial from $120.00 to $117.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on shares of Prudential Financial in a research note on Tuesday, September 16th. They set a “peer perform” rating on the stock. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Prudential Financial from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, November 8th. Evercore ISI boosted their price target on shares of Prudential Financial from $120.00 to $122.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 30th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on shares of Prudential Financial from $117.00 to $118.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, November 3rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $120.73.

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.