Ballentine Partners LLC Raises Stake in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU)

Ballentine Partners LLC raised its position in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) by 7.9% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 8,191 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 598 shares during the period. Ballentine Partners LLC’s holdings in Prudential Financial were worth $971,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Grove Bank & Trust raised its stake in Prudential Financial by 65.9% in the fourth quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 219 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 87 shares in the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Prudential Financial during the 3rd quarter worth about $31,000. Quarry LP lifted its stake in Prudential Financial by 376.3% during the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 281 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 222 shares during the last quarter. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC acquired a new position in Prudential Financial in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Finally, Tompkins Financial Corp increased its stake in Prudential Financial by 61.7% in the third quarter. Tompkins Financial Corp now owns 367 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $44,000 after purchasing an additional 140 shares during the last quarter. 56.83% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Prudential Financial Stock Down 2.5 %

Shares of NYSE:PRU opened at $117.32 on Thursday. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $100.60 and a fifty-two week high of $130.55. The company has a quick ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 0.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $121.84 and its 200-day simple moving average is $120.71. The company has a market cap of $41.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.43, a PEG ratio of 1.10 and a beta of 1.31.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The financial services provider reported $3.48 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.47 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $19.48 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations 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 in the previous year, the firm posted $3.44 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 13.26 earnings per share for the current year.

Prudential Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 12th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 19th were given a dividend of $1.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, November 19th. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.43%. Prudential Financial’s payout ratio is currently 46.22%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

PRU has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Evercore ISI raised shares of Prudential Financial from an “underperform” rating to an “inline” rating and increased their target price for the company from $117.00 to $140.00 in a research report on Thursday, November 14th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on Prudential Financial from $149.00 to $152.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Prudential Financial from $117.00 to $115.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. TD Cowen lifted their price target on Prudential Financial from $130.00 to $133.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 27th. Finally, Piper Sandler lowered their target price on shares of Prudential Financial from $127.00 to $124.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $127.25.

Insider Transactions at Prudential Financial

In other news, major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential purchased 537,249 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 25th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $27.92 per share, for a total transaction of $14,999,992.08. Following the acquisition, the insider now directly owns 4,780,293 shares in the company, valued at approximately $133,465,780.56. The trade was a 12.66 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

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.