Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) Major Shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential Buys 1,406,739 Shares of Stock

Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential bought 1,406,739 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 23rd. The stock was bought at an average price of $24.87 per share, for a total transaction of $34,985,598.93. Following the completion of the purchase, the insider directly owned 7,709,624 shares in the company, valued at approximately $191,738,348.88. This represents a 22.32% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Large shareholders that own at least 10% of a company’s shares are required to disclose their transactions with the SEC.

Prudential Financial Stock Performance

Prudential Financial stock opened at $107.42 on Wednesday. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $90.38 and a fifty-two week high of $123.88. The company has a market capitalization of $37.60 billion, a PE ratio of 14.76, a P/E/G ratio of 1.21 and a beta of 0.97. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $112.49 and a 200-day moving average price of $107.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a current ratio of 0.16.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 29th. The financial services provider reported $4.26 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.72 by $0.54. Prudential Financial had a return on equity of 16.60% and a net margin of 4.65%.The company had revenue of $17.89 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $13.77 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $3.48 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 14.36 earnings per share for the current year.

Prudential Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 11th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, November 18th were issued a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, November 18th. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.0%. Prudential Financial’s payout ratio is currently 74.18%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Prudential Financial

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in PRU. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in Prudential Financial by 1.4% in the 2nd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 42,502,160 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $4,566,432,000 after acquiring an additional 600,482 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Prudential Financial by 1.8% in the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 9,402,393 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,010,474,000 after purchasing an additional 163,874 shares during the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc lifted its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 2.4% during the third quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 2,701,116 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $280,214,000 after purchasing an additional 62,366 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in Prudential Financial by 1.3% in the second quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,408,942 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $258,817,000 after buying an additional 31,088 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB increased its holdings in Prudential Financial by 16.6% in the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 2,044,374 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $231,321,000 after buying an additional 291,422 shares during the period. 56.83% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Barclays cut their price objective on shares of Prudential Financial from $120.00 to $117.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Prudential Financial from $113.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 13th. Weiss Ratings raised Prudential Financial from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Monday, January 12th. Evercore ISI boosted their target price 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. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Prudential Financial from $117.00 to $118.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 7th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $120.78.

Prudential Financial Company Profile

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.