Freedom Investment Management Inc. Boosts Stock Holdings in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU)

Freedom Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) by 14.0% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,478 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 427 shares during the quarter. Freedom Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Prudential Financial were worth $421,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Lynx Investment Advisory bought a new position in shares of Prudential Financial during the second quarter valued at $29,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new position in Prudential Financial in the 3rd quarter worth about $31,000. Bank & Trust Co bought a new position in Prudential Financial during the 2nd quarter valued at about $37,000. Hobbs Group Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Prudential Financial during the 2nd quarter valued at about $38,000. Finally, Tompkins Financial Corp raised its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 61.7% during 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 hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Prudential Financial Trading Down 0.1 %

Prudential Financial stock opened at $129.41 on Friday. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a 12-month low of $96.45 and a 12-month high of $130.55. The firm has a market capitalization of $46.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.50, a P/E/G ratio of 0.93 and a beta of 1.29. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $124.24 and a 200 day moving average of $120.11. 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 (NYSE:PRU) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The financial services provider reported $3.48 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.47 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $19.48 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.57 billion. Prudential Financial had a net margin of 6.03% and a return on equity of 15.30%. During the same period last year, the firm earned $3.44 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 13.35 earnings per share for the current year.

Prudential Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 12th. Investors of record on Tuesday, November 19th will be given a dividend of $1.30 per share. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.02%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 19th. Prudential Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 46.22%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently issued reports on PRU. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Prudential Financial from $116.00 to $117.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Bank of America raised their price target on Prudential Financial from $109.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. UBS Group upped their price objective on Prudential Financial from $112.00 to $119.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 13th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reissued a “market perform” rating and issued a $121.00 target price on shares of Prudential Financial in a report on Wednesday, August 21st. Finally, Evercore ISI upgraded Prudential Financial from an “underperform” rating to an “inline” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $117.00 to $140.00 in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $125.92.

Insider Activity at Prudential Financial

In related news, major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential purchased 261,059 shares of Prudential Financial stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 8th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $27.58 per share, for a total transaction of $7,200,007.22. Following the acquisition, the insider now owns 4,208,549 shares in the company, valued at approximately $116,071,781.42. The trade was a 6.61 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Caroline Feeney sold 1,110 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $119.97, for a total transaction of $133,166.70. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 10,175 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,220,694.75. This trade represents a 9.84 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.31% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.