Hilltop National Bank Trims Stock Position in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU)

Hilltop National Bank decreased its holdings in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) by 7.3% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 9,541 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 751 shares during the period. Hilltop National Bank’s holdings in Prudential Financial were worth $1,131,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its position in Prudential Financial by 4,130.8% during 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. Nordea Investment Management AB grew its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 176.8% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 1,041,420 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $123,804,000 after purchasing an additional 665,180 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its position in Prudential Financial by 97.4% during the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 724,244 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $84,874,000 after purchasing an additional 357,300 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC raised its holdings in Prudential Financial by 31.3% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,444,288 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $174,903,000 after buying an additional 344,254 shares during the period. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Prudential Financial by 4.1% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 8,662,679 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,047,872,000 after buying an additional 341,787 shares in the last quarter. 56.83% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Prudential Financial Stock Performance

PRU stock traded down $3.03 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $115.40. The company had a trading volume of 352,996 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,049,894. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $122.65 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $120.67. The stock has a market capitalization of $41.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.26, a P/E/G ratio of 0.87 and a beta of 1.31. The company has a quick ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 0.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a one year low of $100.60 and a one year high of $130.55.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The financial services provider reported $3.48 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.47 by $0.01. Prudential Financial had a return on equity of 15.30% and a net margin of 6.03%. The business had revenue of $19.48 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.57 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $3.44 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 13.35 EPS for the current year.

Prudential Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 12th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 19th were given a $1.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, November 19th. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.51%. Prudential Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 46.22%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Prudential Financial

In other news, major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential bought 537,249 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 25th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $27.92 per share, for a total transaction of $14,999,992.08. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider now directly owns 4,780,293 shares in the company, valued at $133,465,780.56. This represents a 12.66 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.31% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

PRU has been the topic of a number of research reports. Piper Sandler raised their target price on shares of Prudential Financial from $121.00 to $127.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on Prudential Financial from $149.00 to $152.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Barclays upped their target price on Prudential Financial from $119.00 to $129.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday. Bank of America raised their target price on Prudential Financial from $109.00 to $118.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, TD Cowen upped their price target on Prudential Financial from $130.00 to $133.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 27th. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $127.17.

Prudential Financial 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.