Heritage Trust Co Acquires 3,316 Shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU)

Key Points

• Heritage Trust Co increased its stake in Prudential Financial by 64.4%, buying an additional 3,316 shares, bringing its total holdings to 8,469 shares valued at approximately $946,000.
• Prudential Financial reported an EPS of $3.58 for the last quarter, exceeding analyst expectations of $3.22, despite a 2.5% year-over-year revenue decline.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $1.35, representing a 5.4% annual dividend yield, with a payout ratio of 119.73%.

Heritage Trust Co boosted its holdings in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU - Free Report) by 64.4% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 8,469 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 3,316 shares during the period. Heritage Trust Co's holdings in Prudential Financial were worth $946,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in PRU. Argent Trust Co grew its position in shares of Prudential Financial by 1.5% in the 1st quarter. Argent Trust Co now owns 19,451 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,172,000 after acquiring an additional 281 shares during the period. Manchester Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Prudential Financial by 21.0% in the 1st quarter. Manchester Capital Management LLC now owns 779 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $87,000 after acquiring an additional 135 shares during the period. Cheviot Value Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Prudential Financial in the 1st quarter valued at about $26,000. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC grew its position in shares of Prudential Financial by 8.0% in the 1st quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC now owns 9,858 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,101,000 after acquiring an additional 730 shares during the period. Finally, SPC Financial Inc. grew its position in shares of Prudential Financial by 2.6% in the 1st quarter. SPC Financial Inc. now owns 3,973 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $444,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 56.83% of the company's stock.

Prudential Financial Trading Down 2.8%

Shares of Prudential Financial stock opened at $100.64 on Monday. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a 1 year low of $90.38 and a 1 year high of $130.55. The company has a current ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. The firm has a market capitalization of $35.43 billion, a PE ratio of 22.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.93 and a beta of 1.07. The firm's 50 day moving average is $104.90 and its 200 day moving average is $107.24.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The financial services provider reported $3.58 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 firm had revenue of $13.50 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $13.47 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $3.39 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 2.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts forecast that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 14.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Prudential Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 12th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 20th were paid a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, May 20th. Prudential Financial's dividend payout ratio is currently 119.73%.

Insider Activity at Prudential Financial

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Morgan Stanley decreased 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 research report on Monday, July 14th. 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 note on Tuesday, May 27th. Piper Sandler cut their target price on shares of Prudential Financial from $109.00 to $108.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 16th. Barclays raised 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 note on Thursday, July 17th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Prudential Financial from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $121.75.

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.

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