Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) Shares Purchased by Congress Wealth Management LLC DE

Congress Wealth Management LLC DE raised its holdings in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) by 49.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 3,242 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,075 shares during the period. Congress Wealth Management LLC DE’s holdings in Prudential Financial were worth $384,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in PRU. Glenmede Trust Co. NA lifted its position in Prudential Financial by 7.4% during the third quarter. Glenmede Trust Co. NA now owns 17,968 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,176,000 after buying an additional 1,234 shares during the period. Avanza Fonder AB purchased a new position in shares of Prudential Financial during the 4th quarter worth about $3,423,000. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC boosted its position in shares of Prudential Financial by 56.1% in the fourth quarter. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC now owns 21,998 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,607,000 after acquiring an additional 7,907 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in Prudential Financial by 3.9% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 419,733 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $50,830,000 after purchasing an additional 15,695 shares during the period. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC raised its stake in Prudential Financial by 2.3% during the third quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 79,256 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $9,597,000 after purchasing an additional 1,765 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 56.83% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Prudential Financial news, EVP Andrew F. Sullivan sold 6,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction 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 completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 27,072 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,869,090.56. This trade represents a 18.14 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential bought 52,595 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 25th. The stock was bought at an average price of $28.52 per share, for a total transaction of $1,500,009.40. Following the purchase, the insider now owns 139,987 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,992,429.24. This represents a 60.18 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 0.31% of the company’s stock.

Prudential Financial Stock Performance

Shares of PRU stock opened at $109.94 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 0.16 and a quick ratio of 0.16. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $113.09 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $118.95. The firm has a market capitalization of $39.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.72, a P/E/G ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 1.28. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a 12 month low of $104.45 and a 12 month high of $130.55.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last released its quarterly 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 return on equity of 15.86% and a net margin of 4.01%. On average, research analysts anticipate that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 14.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Prudential Financial Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 13th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th were given a dividend of $1.35 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 18th. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.91%. This is an increase from Prudential Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. Prudential Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 72.29%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

PRU has been the subject of several research reports. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on shares of Prudential Financial from $149.00 to $152.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Prudential Financial from $113.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Barclays lifted their price objective on Prudential Financial from $128.00 to $134.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on shares of Prudential Financial from $136.00 to $128.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Finally, 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. One 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 stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $126.15.

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.