MQS Management LLC Takes Position in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU)

MQS Management LLC bought a new stake in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm bought 4,528 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $548,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in PRU. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Prudential Financial by 4,130.8% in the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 1,298,257 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $157,219,000 after acquiring an additional 1,267,571 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Prudential Financial by 97.4% in the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 724,244 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $84,874,000 after buying an additional 357,300 shares during the period. Swedbank AB acquired a new stake in Prudential Financial during the first quarter worth about $35,855,000. Legal & General Group Plc increased its stake in Prudential Financial by 9.4% during the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 3,542,400 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $415,134,000 after acquiring an additional 305,143 shares during the period. Finally, Capital Advisors Inc. OK acquired a new position in Prudential Financial in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $30,226,000. 56.83% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on PRU shares. Citigroup boosted their price objective on Prudential Financial from $104.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on Prudential Financial from $123.00 to $122.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 19th. Piper Sandler lifted their price target on shares of Prudential Financial from $121.00 to $127.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Barclays boosted their target price on Prudential Financial from $118.00 to $119.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods restated a “market perform” rating and issued a $121.00 target price on shares of Prudential Financial in a research note on Wednesday, August 21st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $123.85.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential purchased 261,059 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 8th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $27.58 per share, with a total value of $7,200,007.22. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 4,208,549 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $116,071,781.42. This trade represents a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other news, major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential bought 261,059 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 8th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $27.58 per share, with a total value of $7,200,007.22. Following the acquisition, the insider now owns 4,208,549 shares in the company, valued at $116,071,781.42. This trade represents a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Ann M. Kappler sold 2,839 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 14,535 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,648,705.05. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.31% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Prudential Financial Stock Performance

Shares of Prudential Financial stock opened at $125.27 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 0.14 and a quick ratio of 0.14. The firm has a market cap of $44.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.89 and a beta of 1.29. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a one year low of $92.57 and a one year high of $129.13. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $121.65 and its 200-day moving average is $119.02.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The financial services provider reported $3.48 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.47 by $0.01. Prudential Financial had a net margin of 6.03% and a return on equity of 15.30%. The company had revenue of $19.48 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.57 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $3.44 EPS. Equities analysts predict that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 13.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Prudential Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 12th. Investors of record on Tuesday, November 19th will be given a $1.30 dividend. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.15%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 19th. Prudential Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 46.22%.

Prudential Financial Company 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.