Jefferies Financial Group Inc. Sells 4,769 Shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU)

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. decreased its position in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU - Free Report) by 22.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 16,814 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 4,769 shares during the period. Jefferies Financial Group Inc.'s holdings in Prudential Financial were worth $1,993,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in PRU. Centricity Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Prudential Financial in the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. CGC Financial Services LLC grew its stake in Prudential Financial by 82.1% in the fourth quarter. CGC Financial Services LLC now owns 275 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 124 shares during the period. Wingate Wealth Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in Prudential Financial in the 4th quarter valued at $33,000. Hopwood Financial Services Inc. bought a new stake in Prudential Financial in the 4th quarter valued at $34,000. Finally, Lee Danner & Bass Inc. bought a new stake in Prudential Financial in the 4th quarter valued at $35,000. Institutional investors own 56.83% of the company's stock.

Prudential Financial Stock Performance

Shares of Prudential Financial stock traded down $0.49 during trading on Friday, hitting $103.84. 3,535,576 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,641,311. The stock has a market capitalization of $36.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 1.07. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $103.69 and a 200-day moving average price of $112.85. 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 0.68.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The financial services provider reported $3.29 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.18 by $0.11. The company had revenue of $13.61 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.76 billion. Prudential Financial had a net margin of 4.01% and a return on equity of 15.86%. Prudential Financial's revenue for the quarter was down 38.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $3.12 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 14.36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Prudential Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 20th will be paid a dividend of $1.35 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 20th. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.20%. Prudential Financial's dividend payout ratio is presently 85.58%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently commented on PRU. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of Prudential Financial from $108.00 to $117.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, May 19th. Piper Sandler cut their price objective on shares of Prudential Financial from $110.00 to $109.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on shares of Prudential Financial from $128.00 to $126.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. UBS Group cut their price objective on shares of Prudential Financial from $122.00 to $110.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price target on shares of Prudential Financial from $120.00 to $117.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Prudential Financial has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $120.15.

Insider Transactions at Prudential Financial

In related news, EVP Andrew F. Sullivan sold 6,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $105.98, for a total value of $635,880.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 27,072 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,869,090.56. This represents a 18.14% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential purchased 52,595 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 25th. The stock was bought at an average price of $28.52 per share, for a total transaction of $1,500,009.40. Following the purchase, the insider now owns 139,987 shares in the company, valued at $3,992,429.24. The trade was a 60.18% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.25% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Prudential Financial Company 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.