FORM Wealth Advisors LLC Invests $427,000 in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU)

FORM Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 3,819 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $427,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Prudential Financial in the 1st quarter valued at about $30,000. Hopwood Financial Services Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Prudential Financial during the 4th quarter valued at about $34,000. Lee Danner & Bass Inc. bought a new position in Prudential Financial during the 4th quarter worth approximately $35,000. TCTC Holdings LLC bought a new position in Prudential Financial during the 4th quarter worth approximately $37,000. Finally, Marshall & Sterling Wealth Advisors Inc. bought a new position in Prudential Financial during the 4th quarter worth approximately $38,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 56.83% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential acquired 1,675,978 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, June 16th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $28.64 per share, with a total value of $48,000,009.92. Following the acquisition, the insider now directly owns 3,168,461 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $90,744,723.04. This trade represents a 112.29% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.25% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Barclays cut their price objective on Prudential Financial from $134.00 to $106.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 11th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on Prudential Financial from $108.00 to $117.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, May 19th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Prudential Financial from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, June 16th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price target on shares of Prudential Financial from $120.00 to $117.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of Prudential Financial from $128.00 to $126.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $120.15.

Prudential Financial Trading Up 1.4%

Shares of PRU stock opened at $105.74 on Tuesday. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a 52-week low of $90.38 and a 52-week high of $130.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 0.17 and a current ratio of 0.17. The firm has a market capitalization of $37.43 billion, a PE ratio of 16.76, a PEG ratio of 1.00 and a beta of 1.07. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $103.53 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $109.94.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The financial services provider reported $3.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.18 by $0.11. Prudential Financial had a return on equity of 15.84% and a net margin of 3.84%. The business had revenue of $13.61 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.76 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $3.12 EPS. Prudential Financial's revenue for the quarter was down 38.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts predict that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 14.36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Prudential Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 12th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 20th were paid a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, May 20th. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.11%. Prudential Financial's payout ratio is presently 85.58%.

Prudential Financial Profile

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.

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