National Bank of Canada FI Buys 14,671 Shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU)

National Bank of Canada FI boosted its stake in shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) by 6.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 248,895 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 14,671 shares during the period. National Bank of Canada FI owned approximately 0.07% of Prudential Financial worth $29,501,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Avanza Fonder AB purchased a new position in shares of Prudential Financial in the 4th quarter worth about $3,423,000. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC lifted its stake 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 buying an additional 7,907 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 3.9% during 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 buying an additional 15,695 shares during the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC increased its position in shares of 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 valued at $9,597,000 after acquiring an additional 1,765 shares in the last quarter. Finally, HighTower Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Prudential Financial by 18.7% in the 3rd quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 69,542 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $8,395,000 after acquiring an additional 10,964 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 56.83% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have commented on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on Prudential Financial from $128.00 to $126.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on Prudential Financial from $149.00 to $152.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped 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 report on Wednesday, February 12th. Piper Sandler decreased their price objective on shares of Prudential Financial from $124.00 to $122.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. Finally, UBS Group dropped their target price on shares of Prudential Financial from $130.00 to $122.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $126.08.

Insider Activity

In other Prudential Financial news, EVP Andrew F. Sullivan sold 6,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $105.98, for a total transaction of $635,880.00. Following the sale, 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 ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential acquired 87,047 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $28.72 per share, with a total value of $2,499,989.84. Following the purchase, the insider now owns 87,047 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,499,989.84. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 0.31% of the company’s stock.

Prudential Financial Price Performance

Shares of Prudential Financial stock opened at $112.83 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $40.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.10, a P/E/G ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 1.28. 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 stock’s fifty day moving average is $112.69 and its 200 day moving average is $118.87. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a one year low of $104.45 and a one year high of $130.55.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 14.36 earnings per share for the current year.

Prudential Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 13th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th were paid a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 18th. This is a boost 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 4.79%. Prudential Financial’s dividend payout ratio is 72.29%.

Prudential Financial 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.