Kentucky Retirement Systems Grows Stock Holdings in Prudential Financial, Inc. $PRU

Key Points

• Kentucky Retirement Systems increased its Prudential Financial stake by 71.7% in the first quarter, bringing its holdings to 38,226 shares valued at approximately $3.5 million. Institutional investors collectively own 56.83% of PRU.
• Analyst sentiment remains cautious, with one Buy, eleven Hold, and five Sell ratings; the stock carries an average “Reduce” rating and a consensus price target of $105.46.
• Prudential reported quarterly earnings of $3.61 per share, exceeding expectations of $3.09, while revenue also topped estimates. The company pays a quarterly dividend of $1.40 per share, representing a 4.6% annualized yield.

Kentucky Retirement Systems grew its position in shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU - Free Report) by 71.7% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 38,226 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 15,961 shares during the period. Kentucky Retirement Systems' holdings in Prudential Financial were worth $3,525,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Jessup Wealth Management Inc purchased a new position in shares of Prudential Financial during the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Garton & Associates Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Prudential Financial in the fourth quarter worth approximately $26,000. Salomon & Ludwin LLC grew its position in Prudential Financial by 98.3% during the fourth quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 230 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 114 shares during the last quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. raised its stake in shares of Prudential Financial by 93.1% during the first quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 278 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 134 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Lodestone Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Prudential Financial in the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. 56.83% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently commented on PRU. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Prudential Financial from $90.00 to $92.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 7th. UBS Group cut their price target on shares of Prudential Financial from $105.00 to $98.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. Piper Sandler raised their price objective on Prudential Financial from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 24th. BMO Capital Markets decreased their price objective on Prudential Financial from $91.00 to $87.00 and set an "underperform" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 23rd. Finally, TD Cowen boosted their target price on Prudential Financial from $102.00 to $114.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and five have issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Reduce" and an average target price of $105.46.

Prudential Financial Price Performance

Shares of NYSE PRU opened at $122.86 on Friday. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a 1 year low of $91.89 and a 1 year high of $124.57. The stock has a market capitalization of $42.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.64, a P/E/G ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 0.85. The company's 50-day moving average is $110.50 and its 200 day moving average is $104.41. 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 issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 5th. The financial services provider reported $3.61 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.09 by $0.52. Prudential Financial had a net margin of 5.83% and a return on equity of 16.33%. The business had revenue of $15.23 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.10 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $3.29 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 13.83 earnings per share for the current year.

Prudential Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 11th. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 26th were given a dividend of $1.40 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, May 26th. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.6%. Prudential Financial's payout ratio is currently 57.61%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential sold 214,746 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.75, for a total value of $5,314,963.50. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 7,973,657 shares of the company's stock, valued at $197,348,010.75. This represents a 2.62% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.05% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

About Prudential Financial

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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