Westside Investment Management Inc. Trims Stock Position in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU)

Westside Investment Management Inc. decreased its stake in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) by 7.5% during the first quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 3,700 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 300 shares during the quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Prudential Financial were worth $434,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Choreo LLC grew its stake in shares of Prudential Financial by 163.5% during the 4th quarter. Choreo LLC now owns 6,940 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $720,000 after purchasing an additional 4,306 shares during the period. Cullinan Associates Inc. grew its position in Prudential Financial by 2,355.0% during the first quarter. Cullinan Associates Inc. now owns 151,598 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $17,798,000 after buying an additional 145,423 shares during the period. Greenwood Capital Associates LLC purchased a new position in Prudential Financial in the fourth quarter valued at $1,087,000. Crestline Management LP raised its position in shares of Prudential Financial by 50.0% in the fourth quarter. Crestline Management LP now owns 60,000 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $6,223,000 after acquiring an additional 20,000 shares during the period. Finally, Nomura Holdings Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Prudential Financial during the 4th quarter valued at about $761,000. 56.83% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Prudential Financial Stock Performance

NYSE:PRU opened at $118.51 on Thursday. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a twelve month low of $87.57 and a twelve month high of $121.39. The company has a market cap of $42.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.15, a P/E/G ratio of 0.89 and a beta of 1.34. The company has a current ratio of 0.13, a quick ratio of 0.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $116.63 and its 200-day moving average price is $111.15.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The financial services provider reported $3.12 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.16 by ($0.04). Prudential Financial had a return on equity of 15.50% and a net margin of 3.76%. The company had revenue of $15.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.50 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.66 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 69.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 13.41 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Prudential Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 13th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 21st were issued a $1.30 dividend. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.39%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 20th. Prudential Financial’s payout ratio is currently 88.44%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

PRU has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Evercore ISI upped their price target on Prudential Financial from $115.00 to $116.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Prudential Financial from $109.00 to $117.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, April 15th. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price target on shares of Prudential Financial from $143.00 to $141.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, June 28th. Piper Sandler reduced their price objective on shares of Prudential Financial from $125.00 to $121.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, May 6th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price 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. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $115.92.

Insider Transactions at Prudential Financial

In other news, major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential acquired 652,884 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 20th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $27.57 per share, with a total value of $18,000,011.88. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider now owns 3,883,390 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $107,065,062.30. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, SVP Timothy L. Schmidt sold 5,189 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $116.58, for a total value of $604,933.62. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 12,236 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,426,472.88. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential acquired 652,884 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 20th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $27.57 per share, with a total value of $18,000,011.88. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 3,883,390 shares in the company, valued at approximately $107,065,062.30. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

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.