UniSuper Management Pty Ltd Purchases 4,662 Shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. $PRU

UniSuper Management Pty Ltd lifted its position in shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) by 14.7% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 36,396 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,662 shares during the quarter. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd’s holdings in Prudential Financial were worth $3,776,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Darwin Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Prudential Financial during the second quarter worth approximately $36,000. AlphaCore Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Prudential Financial during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $39,000. Capital A Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Prudential Financial by 4,600.0% in the 2nd quarter. Capital A Wealth Management LLC now owns 376 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $39,000 after acquiring an additional 368 shares during the period. Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Prudential Financial during the 2nd quarter valued at $51,000. Finally, Crews Bank & Trust boosted its position in Prudential Financial by 36.4% during the second quarter. Crews Bank & Trust now owns 547 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $59,000 after purchasing an additional 146 shares during the period. 56.83% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

PRU has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on shares of Prudential Financial from $117.00 to $118.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Monday, November 3rd. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Prudential Financial from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Monday, January 12th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Prudential Financial from $113.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 13th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Prudential Financial from $117.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 7th. Finally, Mizuho initiated coverage on Prudential Financial in a report on Tuesday, December 16th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $125.00 price objective on the stock. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Prudential Financial presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $120.78.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Prudential Financial news, EVP Caroline Feeney sold 6,555 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $116.28, for a total transaction of $762,215.40. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 22,523 shares in the company, valued at $2,618,974.44. This represents a 22.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Chairman Charles F. Lowrey sold 48,164 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $107.39, for a total transaction of $5,172,331.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman directly owned 165,564 shares in the company, valued at approximately $17,779,917.96. This represents a 22.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 62,719 shares of company stock valued at $6,796,067 over the last quarter. 0.25% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Prudential Financial Stock Up 1.1%

NYSE PRU opened at $108.91 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58. The company has a market cap of $38.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.96, a PEG ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 0.97. The company has a 50 day moving average of $112.39 and a 200-day moving average of $107.25. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a 1-year low of $90.38 and a 1-year high of $123.88.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 29th. The financial services provider reported $4.26 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.72 by $0.54. The firm had revenue of $17.89 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $13.77 billion. Prudential Financial had a return on equity of 16.60% and a net margin of 4.65%.During the same quarter last year, the company earned $3.48 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 14.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Prudential Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 11th. Investors of record on Tuesday, November 18th were paid a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, November 18th. Prudential Financial’s payout ratio is 74.18%.

About Prudential Financial

Prudential Financial, Inc, headquartered in Newark, New Jersey, is a diversified financial services company with roots dating to 1875. The firm provides a range of insurance, retirement and investment products aimed at helping individual and institutional clients manage risk, accumulate and protect wealth, and plan for retirement. Prudential’s long history in life insurance and related financial services has positioned it as a major participant in the U.S. insurance market and a provider of services to a broad client base.

Prudential’s core business activities include individual life insurance, annuities, retirement solutions and group insurance products for employers.