Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) Shares Sold by Jefferies Financial Group Inc.

Key Points

• Jefferies Financial Group Inc. significantly reduced its stake in Prudential Financial by 79.6% in the first quarter, now holding only 3,433 shares valued at $383,000.
• Prudential Financial's stock price recently increased by 2.6%, closing at $103.29, with a market cap of $36.36 billion.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $1.35 per share, resulting in an annualized dividend of $5.40 and a yield of 5.2%.

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. lowered its stake in shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU - Free Report) by 79.6% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,433 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 13,381 shares during the quarter. Jefferies Financial Group Inc.'s holdings in Prudential Financial were worth $383,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in PRU. Brighton Jones LLC grew its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 3.7% during 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 during the last quarter. Cerity Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Prudential Financial by 4.1% in the 4th quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 136,175 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $16,189,000 after purchasing an additional 5,397 shares in the last quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia boosted its holdings in Prudential Financial by 211.4% in the 4th quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 166,547 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $19,741,000 after purchasing an additional 113,059 shares in the last quarter. Advisory Services Network LLC boosted its holdings in Prudential Financial by 5.5% in the 4th quarter. Advisory Services Network LLC now owns 44,057 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $5,222,000 after purchasing an additional 2,293 shares in the last quarter. Finally, APG Asset Management N.V. purchased a new stake in Prudential Financial in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $22,355,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 56.83% of the company's stock.

Prudential Financial Trading Up 2.6%

Shares of PRU stock traded up $2.61 on Friday, reaching $103.29. 1,996,535 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,752,058. The stock has a market cap of $36.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.95 and a beta of 1.07. The company has a quick ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $104.81 and a two-hundred day moving average of $106.75. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a 1-year low of $90.38 and a 1-year high of $130.55.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data 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. The business had revenue of $13.50 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $13.47 billion. Prudential Financial had a return on equity of 15.80% and a net margin of 2.75%. The business's revenue for the quarter was down 2.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $3.39 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 14.36 EPS for the current year.

Prudential Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 11th. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 19th will be given a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 19th. Prudential Financial's dividend payout ratio is 119.73%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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 that occurred on Monday, June 16th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $28.64 per share, with a total value of $48,000,009.92. Following the transaction, the insider owned 3,168,461 shares in the company, valued at approximately $90,744,723.04. This trade represents a 112.29% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 0.25% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on PRU shares. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on Prudential Financial from $117.00 to $113.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, July 14th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on Prudential Financial from $116.00 to $113.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 16th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price objective on Prudential Financial from $120.00 to $117.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. UBS Group lowered their price objective on Prudential Financial from $122.00 to $110.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, May 27th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Prudential Financial from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 2nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Prudential Financial currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $121.75.

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.