LifeWealth Investments LLC Acquires 1,226 Shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU)

LifeWealth Investments LLC raised its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) by 52.9% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,544 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,226 shares during the quarter. LifeWealth Investments LLC’s holdings in Prudential Financial were worth $396,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Bridgewater Associates LP boosted its position in Prudential Financial by 41.8% in the 4th quarter. Bridgewater Associates LP now owns 388,349 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $46,031,000 after buying an additional 114,459 shares during the period. Allworth Financial LP boosted its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 96.8% in the fourth quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 10,919 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,281,000 after purchasing an additional 5,370 shares during the period. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund grew its stake in Prudential Financial by 69.6% in the fourth quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund now owns 167,360 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $19,837,000 after purchasing an additional 68,705 shares in the last quarter. BankPlus Trust Department purchased a new position in Prudential Financial during the 4th quarter worth $879,000. Finally, Long Run Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Prudential Financial in the 1st quarter worth $1,481,000. 56.83% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential acquired 52,595 shares of Prudential Financial stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 25th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $28.52 per share, for a total transaction of $1,500,009.40. Following the completion of the purchase, the insider now directly owns 139,987 shares in the company, valued at $3,992,429.24. This trade represents a 60.18% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.25% of the company’s stock.

Prudential Financial Stock Performance

Shares of PRU opened at $103.38 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.17, a quick ratio of 0.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. The firm has a market cap of $36.60 billion, a PE ratio of 16.38, a P/E/G ratio of 1.00 and a beta of 1.07. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a 12 month low of $90.38 and a 12 month high of $130.55. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $103.22 and a 200-day moving average price of $110.69.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The financial services provider reported $3.29 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.18 by $0.11. Prudential Financial had a return on equity of 15.84% and a net margin of 3.84%. The company had revenue of $13.61 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.76 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $3.12 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 38.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts predict that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 14.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Prudential Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 12th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 20th were paid a dividend of $1.35 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, May 20th. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.22%. Prudential Financial’s payout ratio is 85.58%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently commented on PRU. Wall Street Zen upgraded Prudential Financial from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their target price on shares of Prudential Financial from $120.00 to $117.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. UBS Group lowered their price target on shares of Prudential Financial from $122.00 to $110.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, May 27th. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of Prudential Financial from $134.00 to $106.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of Prudential Financial from $108.00 to $117.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, May 19th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $120.15.

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.