LPL Financial LLC Has $58.21 Million Stake in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU)

Key Points

• LPL Financial LLC increased its stake in Prudential Financial by 4.0% during the first quarter, purchasing an additional 20,156 shares for a total holding of 521,190 shares valued at approximately $58.2 million.
• JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its price target on Prudential Financial shares from $126.00 to $136.00 while maintaining a "neutral" rating, reflecting analysts' mixed outlook with a range of ratings from "sell" to "strong buy."
• Prudential Financial recently announced an annualized dividend of $5.40, representing a dividend yield of 5.2%, indicating strong returns for investors despite a slight year-over-year revenue decline.

LPL Financial LLC boosted its position in shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU - Free Report) by 4.0% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 521,190 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 20,156 shares during the period. LPL Financial LLC owned about 0.15% of Prudential Financial worth $58,206,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. North Capital Inc. bought a new position in shares of Prudential Financial in the 1st quarter valued at about $28,000. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Prudential Financial in the 1st quarter valued at about $30,000. Marshall & Sterling Wealth Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of Prudential Financial in the 4th quarter valued at about $38,000. Park Place Capital Corp grew its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 1,841.2% in the 1st quarter. Park Place Capital Corp now owns 330 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $37,000 after acquiring an additional 313 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fourth Dimension Wealth LLC bought a new position in shares of Prudential Financial in the 4th quarter valued at about $43,000. Institutional investors own 56.83% of the company's stock.

Prudential Financial Price Performance

Shares of NYSE PRU traded up $1.41 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $103.14. 644,686 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,779,128. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $104.89 and its 200-day moving average price is $107.12. The stock has a market cap of $36.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.87, a PEG ratio of 0.93 and a beta of 1.07. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a one year low of $90.38 and a one year high of $130.55. The company has a quick ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 30th. The financial services provider reported $3.58 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 firm posted $3.39 earnings per share. Prudential Financial's revenue for the quarter was down 2.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 14.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Prudential Financial

In other Prudential Financial news, major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential acquired 1,675,978 shares of Prudential Financial stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 16th. The shares were bought at an average price of $28.64 per share, with a total value of $48,000,009.92. Following the completion of the purchase, the insider directly 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 acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.25% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently commented on PRU shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Prudential Financial from $126.00 to $136.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Prudential Financial from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday. Morgan Stanley cut 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. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Prudential Financial from $119.00 to $120.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 17th. Finally, UBS Group dropped their price target 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. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Prudential Financial currently has a consensus 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.