International Assets Investment Management LLC Sells 20,000 Shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. $PRU

International Assets Investment Management LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) by 70.3% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 8,462 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 20,000 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Prudential Financial were worth $922,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Mattson Financial Services LLC lifted its stake in Prudential Financial by 312.8% in the third quarter. Mattson Financial Services LLC now owns 12,119 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,257,000 after purchasing an additional 9,183 shares during the last quarter. First Horizon Corp bought a new stake in shares of Prudential Financial in the third quarter valued at $5,856,000. Econ Financial Services Corp purchased a new position in shares of Prudential Financial during the 2nd quarter valued at $1,662,000. Capital Advisors Inc. OK grew its stake in shares of Prudential Financial by 28.4% during the 3rd quarter. Capital Advisors Inc. OK now owns 384,404 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $39,878,000 after acquiring an additional 85,072 shares during the period. Finally, Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund increased its holdings in Prudential Financial by 31.9% in the 3rd quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 40,254 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $4,176,000 after acquiring an additional 9,741 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 56.83% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Prudential Financial

In related news, EVP Caroline Feeney sold 6,555 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $116.28, for a total value of $762,215.40. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 22,523 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,618,974.44. This represents a 22.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Chairman Charles F. Lowrey sold 48,164 shares of Prudential Financial stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $107.39, for a total transaction of $5,172,331.96. Following the sale, the chairman owned 165,564 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $17,779,917.96. The trade was a 22.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 62,719 shares of company stock valued at $6,796,067 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.25% of the company’s stock.

Prudential Financial Stock Performance

Prudential Financial stock opened at $107.60 on Friday. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a 1-year low of $90.38 and a 1-year high of $123.88. The company has a current ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58. The firm has a market capitalization of $37.66 billion, a PE ratio of 14.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 0.97. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $112.29 and its 200 day simple moving average is $107.24.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 29th. The financial services provider reported $4.26 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.72 by $0.54. The firm had revenue of $17.89 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $13.77 billion. Prudential Financial had a net margin of 4.65% and a return on equity of 16.60%. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $3.48 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 14.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Prudential Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 11th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 18th were paid a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.0%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, November 18th. Prudential Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 74.18%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have commented on PRU. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on shares of Prudential Financial from $120.00 to $122.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a report on Thursday, October 30th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Prudential Financial from $113.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 13th. Barclays cut their price objective on shares of Prudential Financial from $120.00 to $117.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Prudential Financial from $111.00 to $116.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, January 8th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on Prudential Financial from $117.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, November 3rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $120.78.

About Prudential Financial

Prudential Financial, Inc, headquartered in Newark, New Jersey, is a diversified financial services company with roots dating to 1875. The firm provides a range of insurance, retirement and investment products aimed at helping individual and institutional clients manage risk, accumulate and protect wealth, and plan for retirement. Prudential’s long history in life insurance and related financial services has positioned it as a major participant in the U.S. insurance market and a provider of services to a broad client base.

Prudential’s core business activities include individual life insurance, annuities, retirement solutions and group insurance products for employers.