Prudential Financial, Inc. $PRU Shares Acquired by First Trust Advisors LP

First Trust Advisors LP increased its stake in shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) by 1.5% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,172,443 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 17,030 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP owned 0.33% of Prudential Financial worth $121,629,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Darwin Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Prudential Financial during the second quarter worth $36,000. Chilton Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Prudential Financial by 146.5% in the third quarter. Chilton Capital Management LLC now owns 350 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 208 shares in the last quarter. AlphaCore Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Prudential Financial during the second quarter valued at $39,000. Capital A Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of 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 valued at $39,000 after acquiring an additional 368 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in Prudential Financial in the 2nd quarter valued at about $51,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 56.83% of the company’s stock.

Key Headlines Impacting Prudential Financial

Here are the key news stories impacting Prudential Financial this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Dividend/total-return narratives and bullish dividend-appeal articles remind income-focused investors of PRU’s attractive yield and could support buying interest. Prudential (PRU) Could Be a Great Choice
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst consensus sits around “Hold” and coverage notes the stock’s recent weakness; this provides little directional catalyst but frames expectations. Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) Receives Average Recommendation of “Hold” from Analysts
• Neutral Sentiment: Options-market flow has shown elevated activity, signaling increased volatility expectations but not a clear directional bet — watch implied vol and large strikes for clues to near-term moves. Is the Options Market Predicting a Spike in PRU Stock?
• Negative Sentiment: Prudential’s Japanese subsidiary reported employees improperly removed/shared information with contracted agencies — a data-handling incident that creates operational, regulatory and reputational risk in Asia and is a clear near-term negative for sentiment. Prudential Japan Subsidiary Finds Employees Improperly Shared Information
• Negative Sentiment: Follow-ups and regional updates (Prudential Gibraltar/Japan) provide more detail on the scope (multiple seconded employees implicated), reinforcing uncertainty around compliance and potential costs. Prudential Gibraltar Addresses Data Handling Incident in Japan
• Negative Sentiment: Recent analyst moves have trimmed targets: Morgan Stanley cut its PRU price target (and kept an Equal Weight) and Wells Fargo downgraded to Underweight and lowered its target — analyst downgrades reduce buying conviction and can pressure the stock. Morgan Stanley Reduces Prudential Financial (PRU) Price Target after Updating Insurance Estimates
• Negative Sentiment: Wells Fargo’s downgrade and lower target (cites lack of near-term catalysts) adds to the sell-side pressure and helps explain recent share weakness. Wells Fargo Downgrades Prudential Financial, Inc. (PRU) to Underweight and Lowers its Price Target to $103

Insider Transactions at Prudential Financial

In other news, Director Joseph J. Wolk acquired 400 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 11th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $105.32 per share, for a total transaction of $42,128.00. Following the acquisition, the director directly owned 400 shares in the company, valued at $42,128. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential bought 1,406,739 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 23rd. The shares were purchased at an average price of $24.87 per share, with a total value of $34,985,598.93. Following the acquisition, the insider directly owned 7,709,624 shares in the company, valued at approximately $191,738,348.88. This trade represents a 22.32% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have acquired 1,408,389 shares of company stock valued at $35,154,439 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.25% of the company’s stock.

Prudential Financial Price Performance

Prudential Financial stock opened at $97.08 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 quick ratio of 0.16 and a current ratio of 0.16. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $107.68 and a 200 day moving average price of $107.07. The company has a market cap of $33.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.71, a PEG ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 0.98.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 3rd. The financial services provider reported $3.30 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.37 by ($0.07). The company had revenue of $15.69 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.48 billion. Prudential Financial had a return on equity of 16.32% and a net margin of 6.20%.During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.96 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 14.36 earnings per share for the current 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 17th. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.8%. Prudential Financial’s dividend payout ratio is 56.00%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

PRU has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Prudential Financial from $111.00 to $116.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, January 8th. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on Prudential Financial from $120.00 to $111.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 3rd. Wall Street Zen lowered Prudential Financial from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, January 10th. Mizuho lowered their price objective on Prudential Financial from $126.00 to $113.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 10th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price 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. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus price target of $115.00.

Prudential Financial 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.