Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. Reduces Stake in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU)

Key Points

• Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. reduced its stake in Prudential Financial, Inc. by 1.3%, selling 31,667 shares and owning approximately 2,377,854 shares valued at $265.56 million.
• Institutional investors have increased their positions in Prudential Financial, with Northern Trust Corp up by 23.7% and Goldman Sachs Group Inc. by 19.2% in recent quarters.
• Prudential Financial announced a quarterly dividend of $1.35, reflecting a 5.2% yield, while the company's payout ratio stands at 119.73%.

Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lessened its stake in shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU - Free Report) by 1.3% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,377,854 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 31,667 shares during the quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. owned about 0.67% of Prudential Financial worth $265,559,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in PRU. Brighton Jones LLC raised its position in shares of Prudential Financial by 3.7% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 3,681 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $436,000 after buying an additional 133 shares in the last quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina increased its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 158,084 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $18,738,000 after buying an additional 990 shares during the period. Covestor Ltd increased its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 65.3% in the fourth quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 815 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $97,000 after buying an additional 322 shares during the period. Heritage Trust Co purchased a new position in shares of Prudential Financial in the fourth quarter worth about $611,000. Finally, Sterling Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Prudential Financial by 14.5% during the 4th quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 48,345 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $5,730,000 after purchasing an additional 6,135 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 56.83% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently commented on PRU shares. Wall Street Zen upgraded Prudential Financial from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, August 2nd. Piper Sandler reduced their target price on Prudential Financial from $109.00 to $108.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 16th. UBS Group reduced their target price on Prudential Financial from $122.00 to $110.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, May 27th. Barclays upped their price target on Prudential Financial from $119.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 17th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on Prudential Financial from $116.00 to $113.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 16th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Prudential Financial has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price 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 firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, June 16th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $28.64 per share, with a total value of $48,000,009.92. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider directly owned 3,168,461 shares in the company, valued at $90,744,723.04. The trade was a 112.29% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.25% of the company's stock.

Prudential Financial Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE PRU traded up $2.00 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $105.26. 1,466,728 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,791,321. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a one year low of $90.38 and a one year high of $130.55. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $104.81 and a two-hundred day moving average of $106.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a current ratio of 0.16. The firm has a market capitalization of $37.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.34, a PEG ratio of 0.95 and a beta of 1.07.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The financial services provider reported $3.58 EPS for the quarter, topping 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 earned $3.39 EPS. Prudential Financial's revenue for the quarter was down 2.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 14.36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Prudential Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 11th. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 19th will be issued a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 19th. Prudential Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 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.