WBI Investments LLC Has $1.12 Million Stake in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU)

WBI Investments LLC reduced its position in shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) by 67.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 9,486 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 20,034 shares during the period. WBI Investments LLC’s holdings in Prudential Financial were worth $1,124,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Grove Bank & Trust boosted its position in Prudential Financial by 65.9% during the fourth quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 219 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 87 shares during the last quarter. Centricity Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Prudential Financial in the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. CGC Financial Services LLC lifted its stake in shares of Prudential Financial by 82.1% during the 4th quarter. CGC Financial Services LLC now owns 275 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 124 shares during the last quarter. Wingate Wealth Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Prudential Financial during the 4th quarter worth about $33,000. Finally, Hopwood Financial Services Inc. acquired a new position in Prudential Financial in the 4th quarter valued at about $34,000. 56.83% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Prudential Financial Stock Up 0.3%

PRU opened at $107.37 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 0.16 and a quick ratio of 0.16. The stock has a market cap of $38.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.37, a P/E/G ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 1.07. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $104.71 and its 200 day moving average price is $113.92. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a 12 month low of $90.38 and a 12 month high of $130.55.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The financial services provider reported $3.29 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.18 by $0.11. Prudential Financial had a net margin of 4.01% and a return on equity of 15.86%. The business had revenue of $13.61 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.76 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $3.12 earnings per share. Prudential Financial’s revenue for the quarter was down 38.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts predict that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 14.36 earnings per share for the current year.

Prudential Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 20th will be given a dividend of $1.35 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 20th. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.03%. Prudential Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 85.58%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential acquired 52,595 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 25th. The stock was bought at an average price of $28.52 per share, with a total value of $1,500,009.40. Following the acquisition, the insider now owns 139,987 shares in the company, valued at $3,992,429.24. The trade was a 60.18% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Andrew F. Sullivan sold 6,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $105.98, for a total transaction of $635,880.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 27,072 shares in the company, valued at $2,869,090.56. This represents a 18.14% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.25% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on PRU. BMO Capital Markets started 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. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on shares of Prudential Financial from $136.00 to $128.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Prudential Financial from $108.00 to $113.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on Prudential Financial from $128.00 to $126.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Finally, Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Prudential Financial from $134.00 to $106.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 11th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Prudential Financial has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $121.92.

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.