Octavia Wealth Advisors LLC Cuts Holdings in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU)

Octavia Wealth Advisors LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) by 2.0% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 14,838 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 306 shares during the period. Octavia Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in Prudential Financial were worth $1,539,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Prudential Financial by 104,987.2% in the 4th quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,450,633 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $243,740,000 after buying an additional 2,448,301 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Prudential Financial in the 4th quarter worth $172,363,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Prudential Financial by 9,281.4% in the 4th quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 1,368,839 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $141,962,000 after buying an additional 1,354,248 shares during the last quarter. Cowa LLC raised its holdings in Prudential Financial by 9,930.2% in the 1st quarter. Cowa LLC now owns 771,824 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $912,000 after purchasing an additional 764,129 shares during the period. Finally, Mariner LLC raised its holdings in Prudential Financial by 2,197.4% in the 1st quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 690,184 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $81,560,000 after purchasing an additional 660,142 shares during the period. 56.83% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Robert Axel sold 6,436 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $111.86, for a total transaction of $719,930.96. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 7,901 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $883,805.86. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Prudential Financial news, EVP Ann M. Kappler sold 7,222 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $108.39, for a total value of $782,792.58. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 24,381 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,642,656.59. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Robert Axel sold 6,436 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $111.86, for a total value of $719,930.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 7,901 shares in the company, valued at approximately $883,805.86. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 29,255 shares of company stock valued at $3,215,664. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Prudential Financial Price Performance

Shares of PRU traded down $0.56 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $107.80. 392,566 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,521,110. The company has a market cap of $38.70 billion, a PE ratio of 16.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.74 and a beta of 1.37. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a 52-week low of $77.22 and a 52-week high of $118.69. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $111.15 and a two-hundred day moving average of $102.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 0.13 and a current ratio of 0.13.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 6th. The financial services provider reported $2.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.67 by ($0.09). The firm had revenue of $13.02 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $12.99 billion. Prudential Financial had a return on equity of 14.52% and a net margin of 4.89%. The firm’s revenue was up 6.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.42 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 13.4 earnings per share for the current year.

Prudential Financial Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 14th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 20th were given a dividend of $1.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 16th. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.82%. This is an increase from Prudential Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.25. Prudential Financial’s payout ratio is currently 77.73%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently commented on PRU. Piper Sandler raised their target price on Prudential Financial from $114.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, April 5th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Prudential Financial from $100.00 to $106.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday, April 11th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on Prudential Financial from $109.00 to $117.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday. UBS Group raised their price target on Prudential Financial from $108.00 to $112.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, February 12th. Finally, Raymond James cut Prudential Financial from a “strong-buy” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, February 9th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eleven have given a hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $111.33.

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.