Handelsbanken Fonder AB Trims Stock Position in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU)

Handelsbanken Fonder AB cut its stake in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) by 21.9% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 98,292 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 27,486 shares during the quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB’s holdings in Prudential Financial were worth $10,194,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of PRU. CWM LLC raised its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 4.6% in the fourth quarter. CWM LLC now owns 10,977 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,138,000 after buying an additional 480 shares during the last quarter. Criterion Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Prudential Financial in the fourth quarter valued at about $75,000. Lindbrook Capital LLC raised its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 25.6% in the fourth quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 1,424 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $148,000 after buying an additional 290 shares during the last quarter. abrdn plc raised its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 37.5% in the fourth quarter. abrdn plc now owns 1,107,210 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $114,829,000 after buying an additional 302,164 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Prudential Financial in the fourth quarter valued at about $1,162,000. 56.83% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Prudential Financial Stock Performance

Shares of PRU opened at $112.76 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 0.13 and a current ratio of 0.13. The company has a market capitalization of $40.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.86, a PEG ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 1.37. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $111.65 and its 200 day simple moving average is $103.56. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a 1 year low of $77.22 and a 1 year high of $118.69.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 6th. The financial services provider reported $2.58 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.67 by ($0.09). The company had revenue of $13.02 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $12.99 billion. Prudential Financial had a return on equity of 14.52% and a net margin of 4.89%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.42 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 13.38 EPS for the current year.

Prudential Financial Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 20th were issued a $1.30 dividend. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.61%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 16th. This is a positive change from Prudential Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.25. Prudential Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 77.73%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently commented on PRU. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of Prudential Financial from $109.00 to $117.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, April 15th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on shares of Prudential Financial from $112.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated a “neutral” rating and set a $118.00 target price (down from $119.00) on shares of Prudential Financial in a research report on Wednesday, January 3rd. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Prudential Financial from $108.00 to $112.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, February 12th. Finally, Piper Sandler upped their target price on shares of Prudential Financial from $114.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, April 5th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eleven have assigned a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $111.33.

Insider Buying and Selling at Prudential Financial

In related news, EVP Ann M. Kappler sold 7,222 shares of Prudential Financial stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $108.39, for a total transaction of $782,792.58. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 24,381 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,642,656.59. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, SVP Timothy L. Schmidt sold 7,912 shares of Prudential Financial stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $108.13, for a total transaction of $855,524.56. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 14,754 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,595,350.02. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Ann M. Kappler sold 7,222 shares of Prudential Financial stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $108.39, for a total transaction of $782,792.58. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 24,381 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,642,656.59. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 29,255 shares of company stock worth $3,215,664 in the last quarter. 0.31% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.