Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC Takes Position in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU)

Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC bought a new position in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 114,423 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $13,563,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Grove Bank & Trust lifted its position in Prudential Financial by 65.9% in the fourth quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 219 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 87 shares during the period. Centricity Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Prudential Financial during the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. CGC Financial Services LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 82.1% during the fourth quarter. CGC Financial Services LLC now owns 275 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 124 shares during the period. Wingate Wealth Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of Prudential Financial during the fourth quarter valued at $33,000. Finally, Hopwood Financial Services Inc. bought a new position in shares of Prudential Financial during the fourth quarter valued at $34,000. 56.83% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

PRU has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price objective on Prudential Financial from $125.00 to $120.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on Prudential Financial from $136.00 to $128.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 28th. UBS Group cut their price target on Prudential Financial from $130.00 to $122.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on Prudential Financial from $118.00 to $108.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 10th. Finally, Barclays cut their price target on 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 assigned a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $121.85.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

Prudential Financial Trading Down 1.4 %

Shares of Prudential Financial stock traded down $1.42 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $102.61. 2,472,251 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,606,516. The firm has a market capitalization of $36.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 1.11. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a 1-year low of $90.38 and a 1-year high of $130.55. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $106.34 and its 200 day moving average price is $115.92. 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 - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The financial services provider reported $2.96 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $3.36 by ($0.40). Prudential Financial had a net margin of 4.01% and a return on equity of 15.86%. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 14.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Prudential Financial Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 13th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 18th were issued a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.26%. This is a positive change from Prudential Financial's previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 18th. Prudential Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 72.29%.

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.