Ranch Capital Advisors Inc. Has $446,000 Stake in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU)

Ranch Capital Advisors Inc. decreased its position in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) by 8.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,761 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 329 shares during the quarter. Ranch Capital Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Prudential Financial were worth $446,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in PRU. Glenmede Trust Co. NA boosted its stake in shares of Prudential Financial by 7.4% in the third quarter. Glenmede Trust Co. NA now owns 17,968 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,176,000 after buying an additional 1,234 shares during the period. Avanza Fonder AB bought a new stake in shares of Prudential Financial in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $3,423,000. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC boosted its stake in shares of Prudential Financial by 56.1% in the fourth quarter. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC now owns 21,998 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,607,000 after buying an additional 7,907 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Prudential Financial by 3.9% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 419,733 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $50,830,000 after buying an additional 15,695 shares during the period. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC lifted its stake in Prudential Financial by 2.3% during the third quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 79,256 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $9,597,000 after purchasing an additional 1,765 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 56.83% of the company’s stock.

Prudential Financial Stock Performance

NYSE PRU opened at $111.35 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $39.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.91, a PEG ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 1.28. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a twelve month low of $104.44 and a twelve month high of $130.55. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $115.53 and a 200 day simple moving average of $119.78. The company has a quick ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The financial services provider reported $2.96 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.36 by ($0.40). Prudential Financial had a return on equity of 15.86% and a net margin of 4.01%. Sell-side analysts expect that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 14.36 EPS for the current year.

Prudential Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 13th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be issued a dividend of $1.35 per share. This is an increase from Prudential Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.85%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 18th. Prudential Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 72.29%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on PRU shares. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on Prudential Financial from $136.00 to $128.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Evercore ISI upgraded Prudential Financial from an “underperform” rating to an “inline” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $117.00 to $140.00 in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on Prudential Financial from $149.00 to $152.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. TD Cowen upped their target price on Prudential Financial from $130.00 to $133.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 27th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Prudential Financial from $113.00 to $118.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $126.15.

About Prudential Financial

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.