ING Groep NV Sells 1,349 Shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU)

ING Groep NV decreased its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) by 7.7% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 16,090 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 1,349 shares during the quarter. ING Groep NV’s holdings in Prudential Financial were worth $1,907,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Grove Bank & Trust grew its holdings in Prudential Financial by 65.9% during the 4th quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 219 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 87 shares during the period. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new position in shares of Prudential Financial in the 3rd quarter worth $31,000. CGC Financial Services LLC grew its stake in shares of Prudential Financial by 82.1% during the fourth quarter. CGC Financial Services LLC now owns 275 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 124 shares during the period. Wingate Wealth Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in Prudential Financial in the fourth quarter valued at about $33,000. Finally, Quarry LP boosted its holdings in Prudential Financial by 376.3% during the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 281 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 222 shares during the last quarter. 56.83% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. BMO Capital Markets initiated coverage on shares of Prudential Financial in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. They issued an “underperform” rating and a $101.00 price target on the stock. TD Cowen increased their target price on shares of Prudential Financial from $130.00 to $133.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 27th. Evercore ISI raised shares of Prudential Financial from an “underperform” rating to an “inline” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $117.00 to $140.00 in a report on Thursday, November 14th. Barclays raised their price objective on Prudential Financial from $128.00 to $134.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on Prudential Financial from $149.00 to $152.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $125.69.

Prudential Financial Stock Down 1.5 %

PRU stock opened at $109.45 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 0.16 and a quick ratio of 0.16. The stock has a market capitalization of $39.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.65, a P/E/G ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 1.31. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $104.44 and a fifty-two week high of $130.55. The business has a 50-day moving average of $116.88 and a 200-day moving average of $119.80.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last released its quarterly 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 return on equity of 15.86% and a net margin of 4.01%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 14.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Prudential Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared 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 is Tuesday, February 18th. This is a boost from Prudential Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.93%. Prudential Financial’s payout ratio is 72.29%.

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.