Prudential Financial, Inc. $PRU Stock Holdings Lessened by Osmosis Investment Management UK Ltd

Key Points

• Osmosis Investment Management UK Ltd reduced its Prudential Financial stake by 53.4% in the second quarter, selling 14,881 shares and retaining 12,964 shares valued at approximately $1.4 million. Institutional investors collectively own 56.83% of PRU.
• Analyst sentiment remains cautious: PRU has a consensus rating of “Reduce”, with one Buy, 11 Hold and five Sell ratings, despite several analysts raising price targets. The average target is $109.31, below the stock’s reported price of $122.67.
• Prudential reported quarterly EPS of $4.08, exceeding the $3.52 consensus estimate, and declared a quarterly dividend of $1.40 per share, equivalent to a 4.6% annualized yield.

Osmosis Investment Management UK Ltd cut its stake in shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU - Free Report) by 53.4% during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 12,964 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 14,881 shares during the period. Osmosis Investment Management UK Ltd's holdings in Prudential Financial were worth $1,399,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Jessup Wealth Management Inc acquired a new position in shares of Prudential Financial in the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Garton & Associates Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Prudential Financial during the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. Basepoint Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in Prudential Financial during the fourth quarter valued at $30,000. Coston McIsaac & Partners grew its stake in Prudential Financial by 93.4% in the fourth quarter. Coston McIsaac & Partners now owns 265 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 128 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SJS Investment Consulting Inc. increased its position in Prudential Financial by 93.1% in the 1st quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 278 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 134 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 56.83% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Prudential Financial

In other news, major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential sold 214,746 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.75, for a total transaction of $5,314,963.50. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 7,973,657 shares in the company, valued at approximately $197,348,010.75. The trade was a 2.62% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Ann M. Kappler sold 7,652 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $125.01, for a total value of $956,576.52. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 14,407 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,801,019.07. The trade was a 34.69% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Corporate insiders own 0.05% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently commented on PRU shares. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on Prudential Financial from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, July 10th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Prudential Financial from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Prudential Financial from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 8th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of Prudential Financial from $92.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research note on Monday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Prudential Financial from $103.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 19th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and five have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and an average price target of $109.31.

Prudential Financial Price Performance

Shares of Prudential Financial stock opened at $122.67 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 0.16 and a quick ratio of 0.16. The company has a market cap of $42.32 billion, a PE ratio of 11.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.29 and a beta of 0.84. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $116.93 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $105.78. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $91.89 and a fifty-two week high of $127.72.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 4th. The financial services provider reported $4.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.52 by $0.56. The company had revenue of $14.15 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.36 billion. Prudential Financial had a net margin of 6.51% and a return on equity of 16.68%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $3.58 EPS. Analysts expect that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 14.24 EPS for the current year.

Prudential Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 25th will be paid a dividend of $1.40 per share. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.6%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, August 25th. Prudential Financial's payout ratio is currently 50.72%.

Prudential Financial Profile

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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