HBK Sorce Advisory LLC Cuts Stock Holdings in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU)

HBK Sorce Advisory LLC trimmed its position in shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) by 4.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 7,923 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 343 shares during the period. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC’s holdings in Prudential Financial were worth $822,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC grew its position in Prudential Financial by 104,987.2% in the fourth quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,450,633 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $243,740,000 after acquiring an additional 2,448,301 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Prudential Financial during the 4th quarter valued at $172,363,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in Prudential Financial by 9,281.4% in the 4th quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 1,368,839 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $141,962,000 after buying an additional 1,354,248 shares in the last quarter. Cowa LLC increased its position in shares of Prudential Financial by 9,930.2% during the first quarter. Cowa LLC now owns 771,824 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $912,000 after acquiring an additional 764,129 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mariner LLC lifted its stake in shares of Prudential Financial by 2,197.4% in the first quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 690,184 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $81,560,000 after acquiring an additional 660,142 shares in the last quarter. 56.83% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Prudential Financial

In other news, SVP Robert Axel sold 6,436 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $111.86, for a total value of $719,930.96. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 7,901 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $883,805.86. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In other Prudential Financial news, SVP Robert Axel sold 6,436 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $111.86, for a total transaction of $719,930.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 7,901 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $883,805.86. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, SVP Timothy L. Schmidt sold 7,912 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $108.13, for a total value of $855,524.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 14,754 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,595,350.02. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 29,255 shares of company stock valued at $3,215,664 in the last quarter. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on PRU shares. Raymond James lowered Prudential Financial from a “strong-buy” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 9th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Prudential Financial from $105.00 to $109.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 7th. Piper Sandler increased their price objective on shares of Prudential Financial from $114.00 to $125.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, April 5th. TheStreet raised shares of Prudential Financial from a “c+” rating to an “a-” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 6th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $118.00 target price (down previously from $119.00) on shares of Prudential Financial in a research note on Wednesday, January 3rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and ten have issued a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $108.10.

Prudential Financial Price Performance

Shares of NYSE PRU opened at $114.30 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $110.58 and its 200-day moving average price is $102.35. The company has a quick ratio of 0.13, a current ratio of 0.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a twelve month low of $77.22 and a twelve month high of $118.69. The company has a market capitalization of $41.03 billion, a PE ratio of 17.09, a PEG ratio of 0.85 and a beta of 1.37.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 6th. The financial services provider reported $2.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.67 by ($0.09). Prudential Financial had a return on equity of 14.52% and a net margin of 4.89%. The firm had revenue of $13.02 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $12.99 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.42 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 6.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 13.39 EPS for the current year.

Prudential Financial Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 14th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 20th were issued a dividend of $1.30 per share. This is a boost from Prudential Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.25. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 16th. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.55%. Prudential Financial’s dividend payout ratio is 77.73%.

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.