Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) Stock Holdings Lessened by USS Investment Management Ltd

USS Investment Management Ltd reduced its stake in shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU - Free Report) by 11.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 50,433 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 6,578 shares during the quarter. USS Investment Management Ltd's holdings in Prudential Financial were worth $5,980,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Centricity Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Prudential Financial in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. CGC Financial Services LLC grew its position in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 124 shares during the last quarter. Wingate Wealth Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Prudential Financial in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Hopwood Financial Services Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Prudential Financial in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Finally, Lee Danner & Bass Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Prudential Financial in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $35,000. 56.83% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

PRU has been the topic of several research reports. UBS Group lowered their price target 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced 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 note on Wednesday, April 2nd. Morgan Stanley upped 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 note on Monday, May 19th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price objective 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. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Prudential Financial from $108.00 to $113.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $120.15.

Prudential Financial Trading Down 0.5%

Shares of PRU stock traded down $0.56 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $103.99. The company's stock had a trading volume of 994,734 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,626,061. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $104.02 and its 200-day simple moving average is $113.06. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a 12-month low of $90.38 and a 12-month 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 0.68. The firm has a market capitalization of $36.81 billion, a PE ratio of 13.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 1.07.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The financial services provider reported $3.29 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.18 by $0.11. The business had revenue of $13.61 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.76 billion. Prudential Financial had a net margin of 4.01% and a return on equity of 15.86%. The business's revenue for the quarter was down 38.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $3.12 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 14.36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Prudential Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 20th will be issued a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.19%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 20th. Prudential Financial's payout ratio is 85.58%.

Insider Activity at Prudential Financial

In related news, major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential acquired 87,047 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $28.72 per share, with a total value of $2,499,989.84. Following the acquisition, the insider now directly owns 87,047 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,499,989.84. The trade was a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Andrew F. Sullivan sold 6,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $105.98, for a total transaction of $635,880.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 27,072 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,869,090.56. This represents a 18.14% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.25% of the company's stock.

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.