Raymond James Trust N.A. Decreases Holdings in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU)

Raymond James Trust N.A. trimmed its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) by 2.7% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 7,896 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 221 shares during the period. Raymond James Trust N.A.’s holdings in Prudential Financial were worth $956,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Creekmur Asset Management LLC boosted its position in Prudential Financial by 78.8% during the 1st quarter. Creekmur Asset Management LLC now owns 245 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 108 shares during the period. Lynx Investment Advisory purchased a new position in Prudential Financial in the 2nd quarter valued at about $29,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new position in Prudential Financial in the 3rd quarter valued at about $31,000. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC boosted its position in Prudential Financial by 1,312.4% in the 2nd quarter. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC now owns 26,934 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 25,027 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank & Trust Co purchased a new position in Prudential Financial in the 2nd quarter valued at about $37,000. 56.83% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Prudential Financial Price Performance

PRU opened at $127.89 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $45.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 1.29. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $94.92 and a fifty-two week high of $129.13. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $123.30 and its 200 day moving average price is $119.74. 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 (NYSE:PRU) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The financial services provider reported $3.48 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.47 by $0.01. Prudential Financial had a net margin of 6.03% and a return on equity of 15.30%. The firm had revenue of $19.48 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.57 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $3.44 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 13.33 earnings per share for the current year.

Prudential Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 12th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 19th will be given a $1.30 dividend. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.07%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 19th. Prudential Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 46.22%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Prudential Financial from $116.00 to $117.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. TD Cowen assumed coverage on shares of Prudential Financial in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $130.00 price objective for the company. Argus raised shares of Prudential Financial to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Evercore ISI upgraded shares of Prudential Financial from an “underperform” rating to an “inline” rating and upped their target price for the company from $117.00 to $140.00 in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. Finally, Barclays upped their target price on shares of Prudential Financial from $118.00 to $119.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Prudential Financial currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $125.69.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential acquired 261,059 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 8th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $27.58 per share, for a total transaction of $7,200,007.22. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider now directly owns 4,208,549 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $116,071,781.42. The trade was a 6.61 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Caroline Feeney sold 1,110 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $119.97, for a total transaction of $133,166.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 10,175 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,220,694.75. This trade represents a 9.84 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.31% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.