Venturi Wealth Management LLC Raises Stock Holdings in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU)

Venturi Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) by 288.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,065 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,534 shares during the quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Prudential Financial were worth $245,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in PRU. AMF Tjanstepension AB grew its position in shares of Prudential Financial by 12.5% during the third quarter. AMF Tjanstepension AB now owns 203,197 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $24,642,000 after purchasing an additional 22,588 shares in the last quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Prudential Financial by 32.8% during the 3rd quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC now owns 5,235 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $634,000 after buying an additional 1,294 shares in the last quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Prudential Financial by 5.7% during the 3rd quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 7,981 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $966,000 after buying an additional 427 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in Prudential Financial by 4,130.8% during the 3rd 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 buying an additional 1,267,571 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Moody Aldrich Partners LLC purchased a new position in Prudential Financial during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $341,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 56.83% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential purchased 537,249 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, November 25th. The stock was bought at an average price of $27.92 per share, with a total value of $14,999,992.08. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 4,780,293 shares in the company, valued at $133,465,780.56. The trade was a 12.66 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.31% of the company’s stock.

Prudential Financial Trading Down 1.5 %

Shares of NYSE PRU opened at $109.45 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $116.88 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $119.62. The firm has a market cap of $39.18 billion, a PE ratio of 14.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.99 and a beta of 1.31. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a twelve month low of $104.44 and a twelve month high of $130.55.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The financial services provider reported $2.96 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.36 by ($0.40). Prudential Financial had a net margin of 4.01% and a return on equity of 15.86%. Analysts expect that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 14.34 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Prudential Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 13th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be given a dividend of $1.35 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 18th. This is a positive change from Prudential Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.93%. Prudential Financial’s payout ratio is 72.29%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have weighed in on PRU shares. TD Cowen raised their price target on Prudential Financial from $130.00 to $133.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 27th. Barclays raised their price target on Prudential Financial from $128.00 to $134.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Evercore ISI upgraded Prudential Financial from an “underperform” rating to an “inline” rating and raised their price target for the company from $117.00 to $140.00 in a report on Thursday, November 14th. BMO Capital Markets began coverage on Prudential Financial in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. They issued an “underperform” rating and a $101.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Prudential Financial from $113.00 to $118.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $125.69.

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.