Ethic Inc. Has $6.18 Million Stock Position in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU)

Ethic Inc. cut its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) by 18.3% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 52,149 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 11,693 shares during the quarter. Ethic Inc.’s holdings in Prudential Financial were worth $6,181,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of PRU. Grove Bank & Trust boosted its stake in Prudential Financial by 65.9% in the fourth quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 219 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 87 shares during the last quarter. Centricity Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Prudential Financial in the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. CGC Financial Services LLC boosted its position in shares of Prudential Financial by 82.1% in the 4th quarter. CGC Financial Services LLC now owns 275 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 124 shares during the last quarter. Wingate Wealth Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Prudential Financial during the fourth quarter worth $33,000. Finally, Hopwood Financial Services Inc. acquired a new position in Prudential Financial in the fourth quarter valued at about $34,000. Institutional investors own 56.83% of the company’s stock.

Prudential Financial Stock Performance

Shares of PRU opened at $103.55 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $36.70 billion, a PE ratio of 13.86, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 1.07. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $104.89 and a 200-day moving average of $114.68. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a one year low of $90.38 and a one year high of $130.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 0.16 and a quick ratio of 0.16.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last announced its quarterly earnings results 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 return on equity of 15.86% and a net margin of 4.01%. The firm had revenue of $13.61 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.76 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $3.12 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was down 38.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 14.36 earnings per share for the current year.

Prudential Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 20th will be issued a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.21%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 20th. Prudential Financial’s dividend payout ratio is 85.58%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Andrew F. Sullivan sold 6,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $105.98, for a total value 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. The trade was a 18.14 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential acquired 87,047 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $28.72 per share, for a total transaction of $2,499,989.84. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider now owns 87,047 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,499,989.84. This represents a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 0.25% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

PRU has been the subject of several analyst reports. Barclays decreased their target price on Prudential Financial from $134.00 to $106.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 11th. BMO Capital Markets started coverage on shares of Prudential Financial in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. They set an “underperform” rating and a $101.00 price objective for the company. UBS Group reduced their price target on shares of Prudential Financial from $130.00 to $122.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on shares of 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, Piper Sandler reduced their target price on Prudential Financial from $110.00 to $109.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 2nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $121.92.

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.