Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) Shares Acquired by Principal Financial Group Inc.

Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) by 3.9% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 419,733 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 15,695 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Prudential Financial were worth $50,830,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Glenmede Trust Co. NA raised its stake in shares of 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 valued at $2,176,000 after purchasing an additional 1,234 shares in the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC raised its position in shares of Prudential Financial by 2.3% during the 3rd quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 79,256 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $9,597,000 after buying an additional 1,765 shares in the last quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Prudential Financial by 4.3% in the 3rd quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 162,685 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $19,701,000 after acquiring an additional 6,641 shares during the period. HighTower Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 18.7% in the third quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 69,542 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $8,395,000 after acquiring an additional 10,964 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its stake in shares of Prudential Financial by 1.6% during the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 3,058,028 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $370,327,000 after acquiring an additional 47,561 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 56.83% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on PRU shares. Piper Sandler increased their price target on Prudential Financial from $121.00 to $127.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. Barclays lifted their target price on Prudential Financial from $118.00 to $119.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Prudential Financial from $116.00 to $117.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of Prudential Financial from $109.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, Evercore ISI upgraded shares of Prudential Financial from an “underperform” rating to an “inline” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $117.00 to $140.00 in a report on Thursday, November 14th. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $126.33.

Prudential Financial Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:PRU opened at $117.83 on Monday. The company’s fifty day moving average is $124.56 and its two-hundred day moving average is $120.42. The company has a market cap of $41.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.87 and a beta of 1.29. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a 12-month low of $100.60 and a 12-month high of $130.55. 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 posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The financial services provider reported $3.48 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.47 by $0.01. Prudential Financial had a return on equity of 15.30% and a net margin of 6.03%. The firm had revenue of $19.48 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.57 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $3.44 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 13.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Prudential Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 12th. Investors of record on Tuesday, November 19th were issued a dividend of $1.30 per share. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.41%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, November 19th. Prudential Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 46.22%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Prudential Financial

In other news, major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential bought 537,249 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, November 25th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $27.92 per share, for a total transaction of $14,999,992.08. Following the completion of the purchase, the insider now directly owns 4,780,293 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $133,465,780.56. This trade represents a 12.66 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 0.31% of the company’s stock.

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.