Davis R M Inc. Makes New Investment in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU)

Davis R M Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 2,624 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $318,000.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Creekmur Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Prudential Financial by 78.8% during the 1st quarter. Creekmur Asset Management LLC now owns 245 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 108 shares in the last quarter. Lynx Investment Advisory bought a new stake in shares of Prudential Financial during the second quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new position in shares of Prudential Financial during the third quarter worth approximately $31,000. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 1,312.4% in the 2nd quarter. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC now owns 26,934 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 25,027 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank & Trust Co acquired a new stake in Prudential Financial in the 2nd quarter valued at $37,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 56.83% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Prudential Financial

In other news, major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential purchased 261,059 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 8th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $27.58 per share, with a total value of $7,200,007.22. Following the completion of the purchase, the insider now directly owns 4,208,549 shares in the company, valued at approximately $116,071,781.42. This trade represents a 6.61 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Caroline Feeney sold 1,110 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $119.97, for a total value of $133,166.70. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 10,175 shares in the company, valued at $1,220,694.75. This trade represents a 9.84 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Prudential Financial Stock Performance

Prudential Financial stock opened at $128.72 on Tuesday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $123.52 and its 200 day simple moving average is $119.82. The company has a current ratio of 0.14, a quick ratio of 0.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a 1-year low of $94.92 and a 1-year high of $129.69. The firm has a market capitalization of $45.82 billion, a PE ratio of 11.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.91 and a beta of 1.29.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The financial services provider reported $3.48 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.47 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $19.48 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.57 billion. Prudential Financial had a return on equity of 15.30% and a net margin of 6.03%. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $3.44 earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 13.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Prudential Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 12th. Investors of record on Tuesday, November 19th will be paid a $1.30 dividend. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.04%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 19th. Prudential Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 46.22%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on PRU shares. Argus raised shares of Prudential Financial to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Evercore ISI raised Prudential Financial from an “underperform” rating to an “inline” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $117.00 to $140.00 in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reiterated a “market perform” rating and set a $121.00 price target on shares of Prudential Financial in a report on Wednesday, August 21st. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on Prudential Financial from $123.00 to $122.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, August 19th. Finally, Piper Sandler upped their target price on shares of Prudential Financial from $121.00 to $127.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $125.69.

Prudential Financial Company Profile

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.