Great Lakes Advisors LLC Reduces Position in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU)

Great Lakes Advisors LLC lowered its position in shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) by 2.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 506,174 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 10,709 shares during the period. Great Lakes Advisors LLC’s holdings in Prudential Financial were worth $59,997,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of PRU. Grove Bank & Trust lifted its position in shares of Prudential Financial by 65.9% during the 4th quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 219 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 87 shares during the last quarter. Centricity Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Prudential Financial during the 4th quarter worth $29,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in Prudential Financial in the third quarter valued at $31,000. CGC Financial Services LLC boosted its stake in Prudential Financial by 82.1% in the fourth quarter. CGC Financial Services LLC now owns 275 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 124 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wingate Wealth Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Prudential Financial during the fourth quarter worth about $33,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 56.83% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently issued reports on PRU. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on Prudential Financial from $149.00 to $152.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Evercore ISI raised shares of Prudential Financial from an “underperform” rating to an “inline” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $117.00 to $140.00 in a report on Thursday, November 14th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target 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. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Prudential Financial from $128.00 to $134.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets started coverage on Prudential Financial in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. They set an “underperform” rating and a $101.00 price target on the stock. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $126.15.

Prudential Financial Trading Down 0.6 %

PRU stock opened at $105.66 on Wednesday. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $115.04 and a 200-day simple moving average of $119.64. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a 52 week low of $104.45 and a 52 week high of $130.55. The company has a quick ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. The company has a market cap of $37.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.14, a PEG ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 1.28.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last posted 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 net margin of 4.01% and a return on equity of 15.86%. On average, equities research analysts expect that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 14.36 EPS for the current year.

Prudential Financial Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 13th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be given a $1.35 dividend. This is an increase from Prudential Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 18th. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.11%. Prudential Financial’s dividend payout ratio is presently 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.