Etesian Wealth Advisors Inc. Cuts Stake in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU)

Etesian Wealth Advisors Inc. reduced its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) by 10.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 6,081 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 726 shares during the period. Etesian Wealth Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Prudential Financial were worth $721,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in PRU. AMF Tjanstepension AB grew its position in Prudential Financial by 12.5% during the 3rd quarter. AMF Tjanstepension AB now owns 203,197 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $24,642,000 after purchasing an additional 22,588 shares during the last quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC grew its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 13.2% during the third quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 8,403 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,018,000 after buying an additional 979 shares during the last quarter. Czech National Bank raised its stake in Prudential Financial by 6.3% in the 3rd quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 72,724 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $8,807,000 after acquiring an additional 4,313 shares during the last quarter. Diversified Trust Co acquired a new stake in Prudential Financial during the 3rd quarter worth about $807,000. Finally, Callan Family Office LLC increased its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 7.3% in the third quarter. Callan Family Office LLC now owns 1,935 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $234,000 after purchasing an additional 132 shares during the period. 56.83% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential bought 537,249 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 purchase, the insider now owns 4,780,293 shares in the company, valued at $133,465,780.56. This trade represents a 12.66 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.34% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

PRU has been the topic of several research reports. Evercore ISI upgraded shares of Prudential Financial from an “underperform” rating to an “inline” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $117.00 to $140.00 in a report on Thursday, November 14th. TD Cowen raised their target price on shares of Prudential Financial from $130.00 to $133.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 27th. Barclays increased their price target on Prudential Financial from $128.00 to $134.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday. BMO Capital Markets assumed coverage on Prudential Financial in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. They issued an “underperform” rating and a $101.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price target on Prudential Financial from $135.00 to $129.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 16th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $125.77.

Prudential Financial Stock Performance

Shares of PRU stock opened at $113.90 on Thursday. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $120.38 and a 200-day simple moving average of $120.46. The company has a market cap of $40.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 1.31. 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 12-month low of $102.67 and a 12-month high of $130.55.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The financial services provider reported $2.96 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.36 by ($0.40). Prudential Financial had a net margin of 6.03% and a return on equity of 15.30%. On average, equities analysts forecast that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 13.24 EPS for the current year.

Prudential Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 13th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be paid a $1.35 dividend. This is a positive change from Prudential Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.74%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 18th. Prudential Financial’s payout ratio is currently 46.22%.

Prudential Financial 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.