Wambolt & Associates LLC Sells 3,087 Shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU)

Wambolt & Associates LLC reduced its position in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) by 12.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 22,037 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 3,087 shares during the quarter. Wambolt & Associates LLC’s holdings in Prudential Financial were worth $2,612,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Nordea Investment Management AB grew its position in shares of 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. purchased a new position in Prudential Financial during the fourth quarter worth about $76,303,000. Amundi increased its stake in Prudential Financial by 32.7% in the 4th quarter. Amundi now owns 1,535,514 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $181,851,000 after acquiring an additional 378,266 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC raised its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 31.3% in 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 in the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Prudential Financial by 4.1% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 8,662,679 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,047,872,000 after purchasing an additional 341,787 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 56.83% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. BMO Capital Markets began coverage on shares of Prudential Financial in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. They issued an “underperform” rating and a $101.00 price target on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price target on Prudential Financial from $129.00 to $125.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. TD Cowen increased their price objective on Prudential Financial from $130.00 to $133.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 27th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price 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 lifted their target price on shares of Prudential Financial from $113.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Prudential Financial currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $126.15.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential acquired 87,047 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $28.72 per share, for a total transaction of $2,499,989.84. Following the purchase, the insider now owns 87,047 shares in the company, valued at $2,499,989.84. The trade was a ∞ increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible 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 shares were sold at an average price of $105.98, for a total transaction of $635,880.00. Following 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 currently owned by corporate insiders.

Prudential Financial Price Performance

NYSE PRU opened at $113.35 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a current ratio of 0.16. The company has a market capitalization of $40.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.17, a PEG ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 1.28. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $113.51 and a 200 day moving average of $119.00. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a one year low of $104.45 and a one year high of $130.55.

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

Prudential Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 13th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th were paid a $1.35 dividend. This is an increase from Prudential Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.76%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 18th. Prudential Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 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.