Ascent Wealth Partners LLC Sells 123 Shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU)

Ascent Wealth Partners LLC trimmed its position in shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) by 1.0% in the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 12,775 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 123 shares during the period. Ascent Wealth Partners LLC’s holdings in Prudential Financial were worth $1,497,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Cullinan Associates Inc. grew its stake in shares of Prudential Financial by 2,355.0% in the first quarter. Cullinan Associates Inc. now owns 151,598 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $17,798,000 after acquiring an additional 145,423 shares during the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI grew its position in Prudential Financial by 44.9% in the 1st quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 230,044 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $27,327,000 after purchasing an additional 71,274 shares during the last quarter. Greenwood Capital Associates LLC bought a new position in shares of Prudential Financial during the 4th quarter worth about $1,087,000. Crestline Management LP raised its position in shares of Prudential Financial by 50.0% during the fourth quarter. Crestline Management LP now owns 60,000 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $6,223,000 after buying an additional 20,000 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nomura Holdings Inc. acquired a new position in Prudential Financial in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $761,000. Institutional investors own 56.83% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

PRU has been the topic of a number of research reports. Citigroup boosted their price objective on Prudential Financial from $104.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Prudential Financial from $118.00 to $128.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 2nd. Piper Sandler lowered their target price on shares of Prudential Financial from $125.00 to $121.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, May 6th. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of Prudential Financial from $123.00 to $122.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, August 19th. Finally, Argus upgraded Prudential Financial to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $119.33.

Prudential Financial Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:PRU traded up $1.36 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $121.16. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 2,141,459 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,501,747. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $118.10 and its 200-day simple moving average is $115.22. The company has a market capitalization of $43.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.61, a P/E/G ratio of 0.89 and a beta of 1.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 0.13 and a quick ratio of 0.13. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $87.95 and a fifty-two week high of $128.52.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The financial services provider reported $3.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.43 by ($0.04). Prudential Financial had a return on equity of 16.00% and a net margin of 4.86%. The company had revenue of $13.84 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $13.78 billion. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 13.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Prudential Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 12th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 20th will be paid a $1.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, August 20th. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.29%. Prudential Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 88.44%.

Insider Activity

In other news, major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential acquired 652,884 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 20th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $27.57 per share, for a total transaction 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 $107,065,062.30. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In related 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 acquired at an average price of $27.57 per share, for a total transaction 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 purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Ann M. Kappler sold 2,839 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $113.43, for a total value of $322,027.77. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 14,535 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,648,705.05. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.31% of the stock is currently 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.