Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) Shares Purchased by Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators

Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators raised its position in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) by 20.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,321 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 729 shares during the quarter. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators’ holdings in Prudential Financial were worth $512,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Bell Bank increased its position in Prudential Financial by 13.2% in the 4th quarter. Bell Bank now owns 73,715 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $8,737,000 after acquiring an additional 8,593 shares during the period. Centricity Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Prudential Financial in the fourth quarter worth $29,000. Handelsbanken Fonder AB increased its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 9.9% during the fourth quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 65,750 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $7,793,000 after purchasing an additional 5,947 shares during the period. LMG Wealth Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Prudential Financial by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. LMG Wealth Partners LLC now owns 72,024 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $8,537,000 after purchasing an additional 1,081 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bryn Mawr Capital Management LLC grew its position in Prudential Financial by 828.7% in the 4th quarter. Bryn Mawr Capital Management LLC now owns 53,743 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $6,370,000 after buying an additional 47,956 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 56.83% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have commented on PRU shares. TD Cowen boosted their price target on shares of Prudential Financial from $130.00 to $133.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 27th. BMO Capital Markets began coverage on Prudential Financial in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. They issued an “underperform” rating and a $101.00 target price for the company. Evercore ISI raised Prudential Financial from an “underperform” rating to an “inline” rating and increased their price target for the company from $117.00 to $140.00 in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on Prudential Financial from $149.00 to $152.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Prudential Financial from $113.00 to $118.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $125.69.

Insider Buying and Selling at Prudential Financial

In related 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 price of $27.92 per share, with a total value of $14,999,992.08. Following the purchase, the insider now directly owns 4,780,293 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $133,465,780.56. This represents a 12.66 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.31% of the company’s stock.

Prudential Financial Price Performance

PRU stock opened at $109.45 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $116.88 and a two-hundred day moving average of $119.62. The firm has a market capitalization of $39.18 billion, a PE ratio of 14.65, a P/E/G ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 1.31. The company has a current ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a one year low of $104.44 and a one year high of $130.55.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The financial services provider reported $2.96 EPS 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, analysts forecast that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 14.36 earnings per share for the current year.

Prudential Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 13th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be paid a $1.35 dividend. This is an increase from Prudential Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.93%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 18th. Prudential Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 72.29%.

About Prudential Financial

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.