Maryland State Retirement & Pension System Lowers Holdings in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU)

Maryland State Retirement & Pension System reduced its stake in shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) by 6.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 19,193 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 1,339 shares during the quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System’s holdings in Prudential Financial were worth $2,275,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. State Street Corp lifted its stake in shares of Prudential Financial by 0.3% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 17,007,013 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,059,549,000 after purchasing an additional 49,830 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 4.1% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 8,662,679 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,047,872,000 after purchasing an additional 341,787 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 1.6% in the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 3,058,028 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $370,327,000 after purchasing an additional 47,561 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 2,454,278 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $290,906,000 after purchasing an additional 6,938 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,409,521 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $285,601,000 after purchasing an additional 26,210 shares during the period. 56.83% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently commented on PRU. TD Cowen raised their target price on 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, February 5th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on Prudential Financial from $149.00 to $152.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their target price on Prudential Financial from $129.00 to $125.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Prudential Financial from $113.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $126.15.

Prudential Financial Price Performance

PRU stock opened at $110.76 on Friday. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a 52-week low of $104.45 and a 52-week high of $130.55. The company has a quick ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. The business has a fifty day moving average of $113.65 and a two-hundred day moving average of $119.12. The stock has a market cap of $39.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 1.28.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 net margin of 4.01% and a return on equity of 15.86%. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 14.36 earnings per share for the current year.

Prudential Financial Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 13th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 18th were paid a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.88%. This is a boost from Prudential Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 18th. Prudential Financial’s payout ratio is presently 72.29%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Prudential Financial news, major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential purchased 87,047 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $28.72 per share, with a total value of $2,499,989.84. Following the acquisition, the insider now directly owns 87,047 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,499,989.84. This represents a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Andrew F. Sullivan sold 6,000 shares of Prudential Financial stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $105.98, for a total value of $635,880.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 27,072 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,869,090.56. This trade represents a 18.14 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.31% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.