Sciencast Management LP Invests $287,000 in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU)

Sciencast Management LP acquired a new position in shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 2,424 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $287,000.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Nordea Investment Management AB raised its position in Prudential Financial by 176.8% in the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 1,041,420 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $123,804,000 after buying an additional 665,180 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Prudential Financial in the fourth quarter valued at about $76,303,000. Amundi raised its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 32.7% in the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 1,535,514 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $181,851,000 after purchasing an additional 378,266 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC raised its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 31.3% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,444,288 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $174,903,000 after purchasing an additional 344,254 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Prudential Financial by 4.1% in the 3rd 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 buying an additional 341,787 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 56.83% of the company’s stock.

Prudential Financial Price Performance

Shares of NYSE PRU opened at $110.35 on Monday. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $113.57 and a 200-day moving average of $119.03. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $104.45 and a fifty-two week high of $130.55. The stock has a market cap of $39.51 billion, a PE ratio of 14.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 1.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a current ratio of 0.16.

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 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%. Equities research analysts anticipate that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 14.36 earnings per share for the current year.

Prudential Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 13th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 18th were given a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.89%. This is a boost from Prudential Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 18th. Prudential Financial’s payout ratio is presently 72.29%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have commented on PRU. TD Cowen increased their price objective on shares of Prudential Financial from $130.00 to $133.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 27th. BMO Capital Markets initiated coverage on Prudential Financial in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. They set an “underperform” rating and a $101.00 target price for the company. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Prudential Financial from $113.00 to $118.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price objective on shares of Prudential Financial from $129.00 to $125.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, Piper Sandler decreased their price objective on shares of Prudential Financial from $127.00 to $124.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 16th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $126.15.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential purchased 87,047 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were purchased at an average price 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 purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Andrew F. Sullivan sold 6,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $105.98, for a total transaction of $635,880.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 27,072 shares in the company, valued at $2,869,090.56. The trade was a 18.14 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.31% of the company’s stock.

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.