Banque Cantonale Vaudoise Invests $3.03 Million in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU)

Key Points

• Banque Cantonale Vaudoise acquired 27,165 shares of Prudential Financial, Inc., worth approximately $3,033,000, marking a significant institutional investment in the company.
• Prudential Financial's stock has recently seen a mixed range of analyst price target adjustments, with a current average target of $121.75 and an overall rating of "Hold".
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $1.35 per share, resulting in an annualized dividend yield of 5.22%, with a payout ratio of 85.58%.

Banque Cantonale Vaudoise acquired a new position in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 27,165 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $3,033,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Prudential Financial in the 4th quarter worth approximately $115,878,000. Northern Trust Corp raised its stake in shares of Prudential Financial by 23.7% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 4,686,690 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $555,513,000 after buying an additional 897,916 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake in shares of Prudential Financial by 11,280.3% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 867,865 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $96,923,000 after buying an additional 860,239 shares during the period. Marshall Wace LLP lifted its position in shares of Prudential Financial by 322.9% during the 4th quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 711,102 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $84,287,000 after buying an additional 542,964 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its stake in shares of Prudential Financial by 11.5% during the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 3,410,363 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $404,230,000 after acquiring an additional 352,335 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 56.83% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

PRU has been the topic of several recent research reports. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Prudential Financial from $119.00 to $120.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, July 17th. UBS Group dropped their price target on shares of Prudential Financial from $122.00 to $110.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, May 27th. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on shares of Prudential Financial from $117.00 to $113.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, July 14th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Prudential Financial from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Saturday, July 5th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target 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. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Prudential Financial currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $121.75.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Prudential Financial news, major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential purchased 1,675,978 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, June 16th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $28.64 per share, for a total transaction of $48,000,009.92. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 3,168,461 shares in the company, valued at approximately $90,744,723.04. This represents a 112.29% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.25% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Prudential Financial Price Performance

Shares of NYSE PRU traded down $2.94 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $100.64. 2,467,747 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,521,826. The company has a current ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 0.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. The business's fifty day moving average price is $104.93 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $107.52. The company has a market cap of $35.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.31, a PEG ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 1.07. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a 12-month low of $90.38 and a 12-month high of $130.55.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 30th. The financial services provider reported $3.58 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.22 by $0.36. Prudential Financial had a return on equity of 15.80% and a net margin of 2.75%. The company had revenue of $13.50 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $13.47 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $3.39 EPS. Prudential Financial's revenue for the quarter was down 2.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts forecast that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 14.36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Prudential Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 12th. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 20th were given a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.4%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, May 20th. Prudential Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 119.73%.

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.