Legal & General Group Plc Increases Stock Holdings in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU)

Legal & General Group Plc lifted its stake in shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) by 9.4% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,542,400 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 305,143 shares during the period. Legal & General Group Plc owned approximately 0.99% of Prudential Financial worth $415,134,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Creekmur Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 78.8% during the first quarter. Creekmur Asset Management LLC now owns 245 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 108 shares during the period. Lynx Investment Advisory acquired a new stake in Prudential Financial during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 1,312.4% in the 2nd quarter. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC now owns 26,934 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 25,027 shares during the last quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Prudential Financial in the first quarter worth $33,000. Finally, ESL Trust Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of Prudential Financial during the first quarter worth $34,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 56.83% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and set a $121.00 price target on shares of Prudential Financial in a research report on Wednesday, August 21st. Citigroup lifted their price target on Prudential Financial from $104.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Argus upgraded Prudential Financial to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on shares of Prudential Financial from $123.00 to $122.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 19th. Finally, Barclays began coverage on shares of Prudential Financial in a report on Wednesday, September 4th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $118.00 price target on the stock. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $120.83.

Prudential Financial Stock Performance

NYSE PRU opened at $120.81 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $43.13 billion, a PE ratio of 20.55, a P/E/G ratio of 0.95 and a beta of 1.30. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a twelve month low of $87.95 and a twelve month high of $128.52. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $117.29 and a 200-day simple moving average of $116.67. 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 (NYSE:PRU) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The financial services provider reported $3.39 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.43 by ($0.04). The company had revenue of $13.84 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $13.78 billion. Prudential Financial had a net margin of 4.86% and a return on equity of 16.00%. Equities analysts anticipate that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 13.3 earnings per share for the current year.

Prudential Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 12th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 20th were paid a $1.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, August 20th. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.30%. Prudential Financial’s payout ratio is presently 88.44%.

Insider Activity at Prudential Financial

In other Prudential Financial news, EVP Ann M. Kappler sold 2,839 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $113.43, for a total transaction of $322,027.77. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 14,535 shares in the company, valued at $1,648,705.05. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Prudential Financial news, EVP Ann M. Kappler sold 2,839 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $113.43, for a total value of $322,027.77. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 14,535 shares in the company, valued at $1,648,705.05. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Caroline Feeney sold 1,110 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $119.97, for a total value of $133,166.70. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 10,175 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,220,694.75. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.31% of the company’s stock.

Prudential Financial Profile

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.