PGGM Investments Invests $209,000 in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU)

PGGM Investments purchased a new stake in shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 2,012 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $209,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Cambridge Trust Co. boosted its stake in Prudential Financial by 77.2% in the fourth quarter. Cambridge Trust Co. now owns 241 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 105 shares during the last quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC acquired a new position in Prudential Financial in the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Headinvest LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Prudential Financial in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Arlington Trust Co LLC raised its holdings in Prudential Financial by 151.6% in the fourth quarter. Arlington Trust Co LLC now owns 307 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 185 shares during the period. Finally, Ritter Daniher Financial Advisory LLC DE bought a new position in shares of Prudential Financial during the third quarter worth $39,000. 56.83% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

PRU has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Evercore ISI raised their price objective on Prudential Financial from $115.00 to $116.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $118.00 price target (down previously from $119.00) on shares of Prudential Financial in a research note on Wednesday, January 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Prudential Financial from $100.00 to $106.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on Prudential Financial from $112.00 to $118.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of Prudential Financial from $109.00 to $117.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, April 15th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eleven have assigned a hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $111.42.

Prudential Financial Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE PRU opened at $111.94 on Tuesday. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a 12 month low of $77.22 and a 12 month high of $118.69. The company has a market capitalization of $40.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.73, a P/E/G ratio of 0.75 and a beta of 1.37. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $111.84 and a 200-day moving average of $103.99. The company has a current ratio of 0.13, a quick ratio of 0.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 6th. The financial services provider reported $2.58 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.67 by ($0.09). The company had revenue of $13.02 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $12.99 billion. Prudential Financial had a net margin of 4.89% and a return on equity of 14.52%. The firm’s revenue was up 6.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.42 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 13.38 EPS for the current year.

Prudential Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 14th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 20th were issued a dividend of $1.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 16th. This is a boost from Prudential Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.25. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.65%. Prudential Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 77.73%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Andrew F. Sullivan sold 7,685 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $111.57, for a total value of $857,415.45. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 13,691 shares in the company, valued at $1,527,504.87. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, SVP Robert Axel sold 6,436 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $111.86, for a total transaction of $719,930.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 7,901 shares in the company, valued at approximately $883,805.86. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Andrew F. Sullivan sold 7,685 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $111.57, for a total value of $857,415.45. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 13,691 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,527,504.87. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 29,255 shares of company stock valued at $3,215,664 over the last 90 days. 0.34% 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.