Argent Trust Co Sells 23,271 Shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. $PRU

Argent Trust Co lowered its holdings in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) by 78.9% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 6,205 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 23,271 shares during the period. Argent Trust Co’s holdings in Prudential Financial were worth $644,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Erste Asset Management GmbH lifted its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 6.3% in the 3rd quarter. Erste Asset Management GmbH now owns 11,754 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,220,000 after acquiring an additional 695 shares during the last quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB lifted its position in Prudential Financial by 4.8% in the third quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 74,128 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $7,690,000 after purchasing an additional 3,376 shares during the last quarter. Whalerock Point Partners LLC grew its holdings in Prudential Financial by 4.4% in the 3rd quarter. Whalerock Point Partners LLC now owns 18,592 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,929,000 after acquiring an additional 780 shares during the last quarter. Integrated Advisors Network LLC raised its position in Prudential Financial by 5.0% during the 3rd quarter. Integrated Advisors Network LLC now owns 8,270 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $858,000 after purchasing an additional 391 shares during the last quarter. Finally, DNB Asset Management AS boosted its holdings in Prudential Financial by 3.6% in the third quarter. DNB Asset Management AS now owns 69,934 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $7,255,000 after acquiring an additional 2,460 shares in the last quarter. 56.83% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other Prudential Financial news, Director Joseph J. Wolk bought 400 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 11th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $105.32 per share, with a total value of $42,128.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director owned 400 shares in the company, valued at $42,128. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Timothy L. Schmidt sold 8,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $107.69, for a total transaction of $861,520.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 11,535 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,242,204.15. The trade was a 40.95% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last ninety days, insiders purchased 1,408,389 shares of company stock worth $35,154,439. 0.25% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Prudential Financial Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:PRU opened at $98.22 on Monday. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a 1-year low of $90.38 and a 1-year high of $119.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 0.16 and a quick ratio of 0.16. The company has a market capitalization of $34.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.82, a P/E/G ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 0.98. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $109.25 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $107.35.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 3rd. The financial services provider reported $3.30 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.37 by ($0.07). Prudential Financial had a net margin of 6.20% and a return on equity of 16.32%. The business had revenue of $15.69 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.48 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.96 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 14.36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Prudential Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 12th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 17th will be given a $1.40 dividend. This is an increase from Prudential Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.35. This represents a $5.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.7%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 17th. Prudential Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 56.00%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

PRU has been the subject of several recent research reports. Evercore lowered their price objective on Prudential Financial from $122.00 to $110.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 5th. UBS Group lifted their price target on Prudential Financial from $111.00 to $116.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Prudential Financial from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, January 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on Prudential Financial from $133.00 to $127.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 4th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut Prudential Financial from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $115.00 to $103.00 in a research report on Wednesday, February 25th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $115.78.

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.