Commonwealth Equity Services LLC Decreases Stake in Prudential Financial, Inc. $PRU

Commonwealth Equity Services LLC reduced its stake in shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) by 7.7% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 258,194 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 21,640 shares during the period. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC owned 0.07% of Prudential Financial worth $26,785,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in PRU. Darwin Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Prudential Financial in the 2nd quarter valued at $36,000. AlphaCore Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Prudential Financial in the second quarter valued at about $39,000. Capital A Wealth Management LLC increased its position in Prudential Financial by 4,600.0% during the second quarter. Capital A Wealth Management LLC now owns 376 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 368 shares during the last quarter. Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in Prudential Financial during the second quarter worth about $51,000. Finally, Crews Bank & Trust boosted its holdings in Prudential Financial by 36.4% in the 2nd quarter. Crews Bank & Trust now owns 547 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $59,000 after purchasing an additional 146 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 56.83% of the company’s stock.

Prudential Financial Trading Up 1.6%

Shares of NYSE:PRU opened at $118.77 on Friday. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a 52 week low of $90.38 and a 52 week high of $123.88. The company’s 50 day moving average is $110.72 and its two-hundred day moving average is $106.81. The company has a market cap of $41.57 billion, a PE ratio of 16.31, a P/E/G ratio of 0.93 and a beta of 0.97. The company has a current ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 15th. The financial services provider reported $3.58 earnings per share for the quarter. Prudential Financial had a return on equity of 16.60% and a net margin of 4.65%.The business had revenue of $8.35 billion for the quarter. Equities analysts predict that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 14.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Prudential Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 11th. Investors of record on Tuesday, November 18th were paid a dividend of $1.35 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, November 18th. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.5%. Prudential Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 74.18%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Chairman Charles F. Lowrey sold 48,164 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $107.39, for a total transaction of $5,172,331.96. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman owned 165,564 shares in the company, valued at approximately $17,779,917.96. This represents a 22.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, SVP Timothy L. Schmidt sold 8,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $107.69, for a total value of $861,520.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 11,535 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,242,204.15. The trade was a 40.95% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last three months, insiders have sold 62,719 shares of company stock valued at $6,796,067. Insiders own 0.25% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have issued reports on PRU. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on Prudential Financial from $117.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 7th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on Prudential Financial from $117.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Monday, November 3rd. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Prudential Financial from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, November 8th. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Prudential Financial from $111.00 to $116.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their price objective on shares of Prudential Financial from $120.00 to $122.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a report on Thursday, October 30th. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average target price of $118.60.

About Prudential Financial

Prudential Financial, Inc, headquartered in Newark, New Jersey, is a diversified financial services company with roots dating to 1875. The firm provides a range of insurance, retirement and investment products aimed at helping individual and institutional clients manage risk, accumulate and protect wealth, and plan for retirement. Prudential’s long history in life insurance and related financial services has positioned it as a major participant in the U.S. insurance market and a provider of services to a broad client base.

Prudential’s core business activities include individual life insurance, annuities, retirement solutions and group insurance products for employers.