Prudential Financial, Inc. $PRU Shares Bought by Eurizon Capital SGR S.p.A.

Eurizon Capital SGR S.p.A. grew its position in shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU - Free Report) by 589.7% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 463,411 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 396,220 shares during the period. Eurizon Capital SGR S.p.A. owned 0.13% of Prudential Financial worth $52,646,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. Plimoth Trust Co. LLC lifted its stake in shares of Prudential Financial by 2.4% in the 2nd quarter. Plimoth Trust Co. LLC now owns 3,860 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $417,000 after purchasing an additional 90 shares in the last quarter. Security National Bank of SO Dak raised its position in Prudential Financial by 0.6% in the second quarter. Security National Bank of SO Dak now owns 14,676 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,584,000 after purchasing an additional 90 shares during the period. XXI Wealth LLC raised its position in Prudential Financial by 5.0% in the third quarter. XXI Wealth LLC now owns 1,967 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $223,000 after purchasing an additional 93 shares during the period. Prosperitas Financial LLC lifted its stake in shares of Prudential Financial by 4.6% during the third quarter. Prosperitas Financial LLC now owns 2,186 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $248,000 after purchasing an additional 96 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Focused Wealth Management Inc lifted its stake in shares of Prudential Financial by 4.3% during the third quarter. Focused Wealth Management Inc now owns 2,360 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $268,000 after purchasing an additional 98 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 56.83% of the company's stock.

Key Prudential Financial News

These are some of the PRU news items that stood out recently:

• Positive Sentiment: Prudential Wealth Advisors reported record third-quarter sales, about $80 billion in client assets, and revenue growth of 20% over two years. It also said it is attracting experienced advisors and serves nearly 4.3 million clients through more than 3,000 advisors, supporting the company’s push to expand wealth management. Prudential Wealth Advisors reports record sales
• Negative Sentiment: Wells Fargo raised its price target from $103 to $113 but kept an “underweight” rating, implying it sees downside from the referenced share price. Wells Fargo rating
• Negative Sentiment: Mizuho lifted its target from $116 to $120, yet maintained a “neutral” rating; its target also remained below the referenced share price, tempering the apparent positive signal. Mizuho rating

Prudential Financial Trading Up 0.9%

NYSE PRU opened at $123.55 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $42.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.24, a PEG ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 0.85. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $117.32 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $109.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 0.17 and a current ratio of 0.17. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a twelve month low of $91.89 and a twelve month high of $128.78.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, November 3rd. The financial services provider reported $3.77 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.33 by $0.44. The company had revenue of $14.45 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.66 billion. Prudential Financial had a net margin of 6.75% and a return on equity of 16.38%. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $4.26 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 13.60 EPS for the current year.

Prudential Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, November 24th will be paid a $1.40 dividend. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 24th. Prudential Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 50.96%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently commented on PRU. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on Prudential Financial from $105.00 to $100.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, October 19th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Prudential Financial from $103.00 to $113.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research report on Thursday. Zacks Research downgraded Prudential Financial from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a report on Friday, October 23rd. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price target on Prudential Financial from $116.00 to $109.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, October 12th. Finally, Deutsche Bank lowered their price objective on shares of Prudential Financial from $105.00 to $102.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 23rd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and six have issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and a consensus price target of $115.67.

Insider Activity at Prudential Financial

In other news, SVP Robert E. Boyle sold 2,794 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $121.24, for a total value of $338,744.56. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 6,008 shares in the company, valued at $728,409.92. This trade represents a 31.74% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Andrew Sullivan sold 3,544 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $121.32, for a total transaction of $429,958.08. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 50,317 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,104,458.44. The trade was a 6.58% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 9,135 shares of company stock worth $1,106,021 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.05% of the company's stock.

About Prudential Financial

Prudential Financial, Inc. is a financial services company headquartered in Newark, New Jersey. Founded in 1875 as the Prudential Friendly Society, it has grown into a provider of insurance, retirement and investment services. The company offers life insurance, annuities, workplace benefits and retirement-related products and services. Through its asset management businesses, Prudential also serves individual and institutional investors. Prudential serves customers in the United States and operates internationally, with a significant presence in Japan and other markets.

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