LSV Asset Management Has $30.29 Million Stake in Prudential Financial, Inc. $PRU

LSV Asset Management trimmed its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) by 5.2% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 292,000 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 15,897 shares during the period. LSV Asset Management’s holdings in Prudential Financial were worth $30,292,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Summit Global Investments raised its position in shares of Prudential Financial by 1.3% during the 2nd quarter. Summit Global Investments now owns 7,609 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $817,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Woodward Diversified Capital LLC boosted its position in shares of Prudential Financial by 1.4% in the 3rd quarter. Woodward Diversified Capital LLC now owns 7,662 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $795,000 after purchasing an additional 103 shares during the last quarter. Pitcairn Co. grew its stake in shares of Prudential Financial by 2.7% during the second quarter. Pitcairn Co. now owns 3,973 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $427,000 after purchasing an additional 104 shares during the period. TIAA Trust National Association increased its holdings in Prudential Financial by 2.7% in the second quarter. TIAA Trust National Association now owns 4,142 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $445,000 after purchasing an additional 108 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Moisand Fitzgerald Tamayo LLC lifted its stake in Prudential Financial by 20.5% in the third quarter. Moisand Fitzgerald Tamayo LLC now owns 642 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $67,000 after buying an additional 109 shares during the period. 56.83% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Caroline Feeney sold 6,555 shares of Prudential Financial 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 sale, the executive vice president directly owned 22,523 shares in the company, valued at $2,618,974.44. This trade 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 available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Jacques Chappuis bought 1,000 shares of Prudential Financial stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 6th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $100.97 per share, with a total value of $100,970.00. Following the acquisition, the executive vice president directly owned 1,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $100,970. The trade was a ∞ increase in their position. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Insiders acquired 1,408,139 shares of company stock valued at $35,128,697 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.25% of the company’s stock.

Prudential Financial Trading Up 0.4%

Shares of NYSE:PRU opened at $104.58 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $36.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.46, a PEG ratio of 1.19 and a beta of 0.97. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a 12 month low of $90.38 and a 12 month high of $119.76. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $111.87 and its 200 day simple moving average is $107.37. The company has a quick ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 3rd. The financial services provider reported $3.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.37 by ($0.07). The firm had revenue of $15.69 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.48 billion. Prudential Financial had a return on equity of 16.32% and a net margin of 6.20%.During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.96 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 14.36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Prudential Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 12th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 17th will be given a dividend of $1.40 per share. This is an increase from Prudential Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.35. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 17th. This represents a $5.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.4%. Prudential Financial’s payout ratio is currently 54.00%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

PRU has been the subject of several analyst reports. Wall Street Zen lowered Prudential Financial from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, January 10th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Prudential Financial from $113.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 13th. Mizuho cut their target price on shares of Prudential Financial from $126.00 to $113.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on shares of Prudential Financial from $117.00 to $118.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, November 3rd. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Prudential Financial from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Monday, January 12th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Prudential Financial currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $117.11.

Prudential Financial Company Profile

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.