CI Investments Inc. Buys 8,799 Shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. $PRU

Key Points

• CI Investments Inc. increased its Prudential Financial stake by 19.0% in the first quarter, buying 8,799 additional shares and bringing its total to 55,039 shares valued at about $5.38 million.
• Institutional ownership remains high, with hedge funds and other investors controlling 56.83% of Prudential Financial’s stock, and several firms recently boosted or initiated positions.
• Analyst sentiment is cautious: the stock carries an average rating of “Reduce” with a consensus target price of $105.46, even though Prudential recently beat earnings estimates and pays a $1.40 quarterly dividend yielding about 4.8%.

CI Investments Inc. boosted its stake in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU - Free Report) by 19.0% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 55,039 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 8,799 shares during the quarter. CI Investments Inc.'s holdings in Prudential Financial were worth $5,377,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in PRU. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Prudential Financial in the 4th quarter valued at $140,530,000. Marshall Wace LLP raised its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 230.3% in the 4th quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 1,374,966 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $155,206,000 after acquiring an additional 958,672 shares during the last quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership raised its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 183.3% in the 3rd quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 804,316 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $83,440,000 after acquiring an additional 520,425 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP lifted its position in Prudential Financial by 37.3% in the 1st quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 1,588,247 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $155,156,000 after acquiring an additional 431,527 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted its stake in Prudential Financial by 6.7% during the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 6,649,202 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $750,562,000 after purchasing an additional 420,081 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 56.83% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

PRU has been the subject of several analyst reports. Zacks Research raised Prudential Financial from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, June 12th. Bank of America cut their target price on Prudential Financial from $112.00 to $104.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 14th. UBS Group dropped their price objective on Prudential Financial from $105.00 to $98.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 9th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "underweight" rating and set a $92.00 price objective (down from $106.00) on shares of Prudential Financial in a report on Monday, May 4th. Finally, Argus downgraded shares of Prudential Financial from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and five have given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Reduce" and a consensus target price of $105.46.

Prudential Financial Stock Down 0.9%

Shares of NYSE:PRU opened at $117.78 on Friday. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a 1 year low of $91.89 and a 1 year high of $120.58. The company has a market capitalization of $40.87 billion, a PE ratio of 12.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 0.85. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $108.55 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $104.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 0.16 and a quick ratio of 0.16.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The financial services provider reported $3.61 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.09 by $0.52. The company had revenue of $15.23 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $14.10 billion. Prudential Financial had a return on equity of 16.33% and a net margin of 5.83%.During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $3.29 EPS. Analysts forecast that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 13.83 earnings per share for the current year.

Prudential Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 11th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 26th were given a $1.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, May 26th. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.8%. Prudential Financial's payout ratio is currently 57.61%.

Prudential Financial Company Profile

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.

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