Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) Shares Acquired by Harbour Investments Inc.

Harbour Investments Inc. boosted its position in shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) by 6.1% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 6,965 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 401 shares during the period. Harbour Investments Inc.’s holdings in Prudential Financial were worth $826,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in PRU. Nordea Investment Management AB grew its holdings in 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 valued at $123,804,000 after purchasing an additional 665,180 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in Prudential Financial during the 4th quarter valued at $76,303,000. Amundi grew its holdings in Prudential Financial by 32.7% during the 4th quarter. Amundi now owns 1,535,514 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $181,851,000 after purchasing an additional 378,266 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC boosted its stake in Prudential Financial by 31.3% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,444,288 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $174,903,000 after acquiring an additional 344,254 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Prudential Financial by 4.1% during the 3rd 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 acquiring an additional 341,787 shares during the last quarter. 56.83% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have commented on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Prudential Financial from $113.00 to $118.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of Prudential Financial from $136.00 to $128.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 28th. TD Cowen raised 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. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price target on shares of Prudential Financial from $129.00 to $125.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets began 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. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $126.15.

Prudential Financial Stock Up 0.8 %

Prudential Financial stock opened at $110.64 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $39.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.81, a PEG ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 1.28. The company has a current ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $113.81 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $119.18. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a 52 week low of $104.45 and a 52 week high of $130.55.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The financial services provider reported $2.96 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.36 by ($0.40). Prudential Financial had a net margin of 4.01% and a return on equity of 15.86%. On average, analysts expect that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 14.36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Prudential Financial Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 13th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th were paid a dividend of $1.35 per share. This is a boost from Prudential Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 18th. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.88%. Prudential Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 72.29%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Prudential Financial

In other Prudential Financial news, major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential acquired 87,047 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were bought at an average price of $28.72 per share, with a total value of $2,499,989.84. Following the purchase, the insider now directly owns 87,047 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,499,989.84. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Andrew F. Sullivan sold 6,000 shares of Prudential Financial stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $105.98, for a total transaction of $635,880.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 27,072 shares in the company, valued at $2,869,090.56. This represents a 18.14 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.31% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.