Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. Increases Position in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU)

Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. increased its stake in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) by 6.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 225,946 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 13,059 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. owned about 0.06% of Prudential Financial worth $23,433,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. FMR LLC boosted its position in Prudential Financial by 2.9% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,315,215 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $124,801,000 after buying an additional 36,599 shares during the period. Czech National Bank raised its stake in shares of Prudential Financial by 46.8% during the third quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 63,444 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $6,020,000 after acquiring an additional 20,235 shares during the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Prudential Financial by 14.5% during the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 268,728 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $25,500,000 after acquiring an additional 34,054 shares during the last quarter. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd raised its stake in shares of Prudential Financial by 17.2% during the fourth quarter. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd now owns 868,535 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $90,076,000 after acquiring an additional 127,772 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Allen Mooney & Barnes Investment Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Prudential Financial during the third quarter valued at about $9,507,000. 56.83% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Prudential Financial Stock Up 0.3 %

PRU opened at $117.40 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.13, a quick ratio of 0.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a 1-year low of $77.22 and a 1-year high of $117.92. The company has a market capitalization of $42.15 billion, a PE ratio of 17.55, a PEG ratio of 0.85 and a beta of 1.36. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $108.53 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $101.15.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 6th. The financial services provider reported $2.58 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.67 by ($0.09). The business had revenue of $13.02 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $12.99 billion. Prudential Financial had a return on equity of 14.52% and a net margin of 4.89%. The firm’s revenue was up 6.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.42 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 13.4 EPS for the current year.

Prudential Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 20th were paid a $1.30 dividend. This is a boost from Prudential Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.25. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.43%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 16th. Prudential Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 77.73%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $118.00 price target (down from $119.00) on shares of Prudential Financial in a research note on Wednesday, January 3rd. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Prudential Financial from $105.00 to $109.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 7th. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of Prudential Financial from $108.00 to $112.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, February 12th. Raymond James cut shares of Prudential Financial from a “strong-buy” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, February 9th. Finally, TheStreet upgraded shares of Prudential Financial from a “c+” rating to an “a-” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and ten have given a hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Prudential Financial currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $105.60.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Robert Axel sold 6,436 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $111.86, for a total transaction of $719,930.96. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 7,901 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $883,805.86. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, SVP Robert Axel sold 6,436 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $111.86, for a total transaction of $719,930.96. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 7,901 shares in the company, valued at $883,805.86. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, major shareholder Pgim Strategic Investments, In purchased 1,191,895 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 2nd. The shares were purchased at an average price of $25.17 per share, for a total transaction of $29,999,997.15. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 4,056,632 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $102,105,427.44. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 29,255 shares of company stock valued at $3,215,664. Company insiders own 0.31% of the company’s stock.

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.