Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) Shares Sold by Benin Management CORP

Benin Management CORP trimmed its position in shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) by 2.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 21,926 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 549 shares during the period. Prudential Financial makes up about 0.8% of Benin Management CORP’s holdings, making the stock its 18th biggest holding. Benin Management CORP’s holdings in Prudential Financial were worth $2,274,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Fairfield Bush & CO. purchased a new position in Prudential Financial in the 1st quarter valued at about $36,000. Blair William & Co. IL raised its stake in Prudential Financial by 11.3% during the first quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 50,600 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $5,979,000 after acquiring an additional 5,126 shares during the period. Sei Investments Co. increased its stake in shares of Prudential Financial by 6.4% in the first quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 90,235 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $10,698,000 after purchasing an additional 5,452 shares during the period. Candriam Luxembourg S.C.A. increased its stake in shares of Prudential Financial by 0.7% in the first quarter. Candriam Luxembourg S.C.A. now owns 47,576 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $5,621,000 after purchasing an additional 326 shares during the period. Finally, Baird Financial Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Prudential Financial by 36.4% in the first quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 135,716 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $16,037,000 after purchasing an additional 36,184 shares during the period. 56.83% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Prudential Financial news, SVP Timothy L. Schmidt sold 7,912 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $108.13, for a total value of $855,524.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 14,754 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,595,350.02. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, EVP Andrew F. Sullivan sold 7,685 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $111.57, for a total transaction of $857,415.45. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 13,691 shares in the company, valued at $1,527,504.87. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, SVP Timothy L. Schmidt sold 7,912 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $108.13, for a total transaction of $855,524.56. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 14,754 shares in the company, valued at $1,595,350.02. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 29,255 shares of company stock valued at $3,215,664. Insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Prudential Financial Stock Performance

NYSE PRU traded up $0.11 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $115.82. The company had a trading volume of 479,276 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,525,590. The company has a quick ratio of 0.13, a current ratio of 0.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. The stock has a market cap of $41.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.30, a P/E/G ratio of 0.85 and a beta of 1.37. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $110.23 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $102.09. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $77.22 and a fifty-two week high of $118.69.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 6th. The financial services provider reported $2.58 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.67 by ($0.09). The business had revenue of $13.02 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $12.99 billion. Prudential Financial had a net margin of 4.89% and a return on equity of 14.52%. Prudential Financial’s revenue was up 6.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.42 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 13.39 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Prudential Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 20th were given a $1.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 16th. This is a positive change from Prudential Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.25. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.49%. Prudential Financial’s payout ratio is 77.73%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have commented on PRU shares. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Prudential Financial from $105.00 to $109.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 7th. Piper Sandler raised their price objective on shares of Prudential Financial from $114.00 to $125.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday. UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Prudential Financial from $108.00 to $112.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, February 12th. Raymond James lowered shares of Prudential Financial from a “strong-buy” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 9th. Finally, TheStreet upgraded shares of Prudential Financial from a “c+” rating to an “a-” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and ten have given a hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $108.10.

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.