SFE Investment Counsel Boosts Stake in Prudential Financial, Inc. $PRU

SFE Investment Counsel lifted its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) by 13.7% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 73,719 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 8,896 shares during the period. Prudential Financial makes up 1.4% of SFE Investment Counsel’s portfolio, making the stock its 22nd biggest position. SFE Investment Counsel’s holdings in Prudential Financial were worth $7,920,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of PRU. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT grew its stake in shares of Prudential Financial by 69.2% in the second quarter. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT now owns 1,230 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $132,000 after acquiring an additional 503 shares during the period. Midwest Trust Co purchased a new stake in Prudential Financial in the second quarter worth approximately $13,864,000. CSM Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Prudential Financial in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $562,000. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. purchased a new stake in Prudential Financial during the 2nd quarter valued at $14,363,000. Finally, Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 7.0% during the 2nd quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 675,324 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $72,557,000 after buying an additional 44,205 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 56.83% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently commented on the company. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on Prudential Financial from $116.00 to $113.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 16th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Prudential Financial in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Prudential Financial from $117.00 to $118.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 7th. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of Prudential Financial from $120.00 to $117.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of Prudential Financial from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $120.73.

Prudential Financial Trading Up 1.0%

Shares of PRU opened at $106.24 on Friday. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a 1 year low of $90.38 and a 1 year high of $130.55. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $103.75 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $104.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 0.16 and a quick ratio of 0.16. The firm has a market cap of $37.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.59, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.88 and a beta of 1.05.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 15th. The financial services provider reported $3.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. The company had revenue of $8.35 billion for the quarter. Prudential Financial had a net margin of 4.65% and a return on equity of 16.98%. On average, equities analysts expect that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 14.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Prudential Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 11th. Investors of record on Tuesday, November 18th will be given a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.1%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 18th. Prudential Financial’s payout ratio is currently 74.18%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Prudential Financial news, EVP Ann M. Kappler sold 4,000 shares of Prudential Financial stock in a transaction on Friday, August 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $109.65, for a total value of $438,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 21,506 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,358,132.90. This trade represents a 15.68% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.25% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.