Groupama Asset Managment Purchases New Holdings in Prudential Financial, Inc. $PRU

Key Points

• Groupama Asset Management acquired a new stake of 8,788 shares in Prudential Financial, Inc., worth approximately $967,000.
• Prudential Financial reported earnings of $3.58 per share for the last quarter, surpassing estimates of $3.22, despite a year-over-year revenue decline of 2.5%.
• A quarterly dividend of $1.35 per share has been announced, yielding 5.0%, with a dividend payout ratio of 119.73%.

Groupama Asset Managment bought a new stake in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 8,788 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $967,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of PRU. Meeder Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Prudential Financial by 90.2% during the first quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 234 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 111 shares during the last quarter. Cheviot Value Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Prudential Financial in the first quarter worth about $26,000. North Capital Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Prudential Financial in the first quarter worth about $28,000. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Prudential Financial in the first quarter worth about $30,000. Finally, Clearstead Trust LLC lifted its holdings in Prudential Financial by 350.8% in the first quarter. Clearstead Trust LLC now owns 266 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 207 shares during the period. 56.83% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Prudential Financial Price Performance

Shares of PRU traded up $2.63 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $109.80. 1,957,163 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,771,471. The company has a current ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a 52-week low of $90.38 and a 52-week high of $130.55. The company's 50-day moving average price is $105.21 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $105.88. The company has a market cap of $38.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 1.07.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results 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 net margin of 2.75% and a return on equity of 15.80%. The company had revenue of $13.50 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $13.47 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $3.39 EPS. Prudential Financial's revenue for the quarter was down 2.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts anticipate that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 14.36 earnings per share for the current year.

Prudential Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 11th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 19th will be given a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.9%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, August 19th. Prudential Financial's dividend payout ratio is currently 119.73%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

PRU has been the subject of several analyst reports. Piper Sandler reduced their price target on shares of Prudential Financial from $109.00 to $108.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 16th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of Prudential Financial from $116.00 to $113.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 16th. UBS Group cut their target price on shares of Prudential Financial from $122.00 to $110.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, May 27th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Prudential Financial from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 2nd. Finally, Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Prudential Financial from $119.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 17th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Prudential Financial currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $122.08.

Insider Activity

In other Prudential Financial news, major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential bought 1,675,978 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 16th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $28.64 per share, for a total transaction of $48,000,009.92. Following the transaction, the insider owned 3,168,461 shares of the company's stock, valued at $90,744,723.04. This represents a 112.29% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.25% of the company's stock.

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.