Sound Income Strategies LLC Increases Stock Position in Prudential Financial, Inc. $PRU

Key Points

• Sound Income Strategies LLC increased its holdings in Prudential Financial, Inc. by 7.2%, owning 37,940 shares valued at approximately $4.08 million at the end of the second quarter.
• Multiple institutional investors have significantly enhanced their stakes in Prudential, with GAMMA Investing LLC raising its stake by 11,280.3% during the first quarter.
• Prudential Financial declared a quarterly dividend of $1.35 per share, reflecting an annualized yield of 5.2%, despite a dividend payout ratio of 119.73%.

Sound Income Strategies LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU - Free Report) by 7.2% during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 37,940 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 2,532 shares during the quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC's holdings in Prudential Financial were worth $4,076,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of PRU. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in shares of Prudential Financial by 11,280.3% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 867,865 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $96,923,000 after buying an additional 860,239 shares in the last quarter. Nuveen LLC purchased a new stake in Prudential Financial in the 1st quarter worth approximately $90,010,000. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its stake in Prudential Financial by 19.2% in the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 4,206,453 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $469,777,000 after purchasing an additional 678,028 shares in the last quarter. Amundi lifted its stake in Prudential Financial by 14.1% in the 1st quarter. Amundi now owns 1,751,633 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $183,571,000 after purchasing an additional 216,119 shares in the last quarter. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Prudential Financial by 72.8% in the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 424,659 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $46,789,000 after purchasing an additional 178,888 shares in the last quarter. 56.83% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Prudential Financial

In related news, EVP Ann M. Kappler sold 4,000 shares of Prudential Financial stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $109.65, for a total transaction of $438,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 21,506 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,358,132.90. This trade represents a 15.68% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.25% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have issued reports on the stock. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on shares of Prudential Financial in a research note on Tuesday, September 16th. They issued a "peer perform" rating on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Prudential Financial from $126.00 to $136.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Prudential Financial from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, August 2nd. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of Prudential Financial from $113.00 to $117.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, August 18th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of Prudential Financial from $116.00 to $113.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 16th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $122.08.

Prudential Financial Trading Up 1.7%

Shares of PRU opened at $104.36 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $36.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.14, a PEG ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 1.07. The company has a quick ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $105.28 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $105.03. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a twelve month low of $90.38 and a twelve month high of $130.55.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The financial services provider reported $3.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates 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 during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $13.47 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $3.39 EPS. Prudential Financial's revenue was down 2.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts anticipate that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 14.36 EPS for the current year.

Prudential Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 11th. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 19th were given a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, August 19th. Prudential Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 119.73%.

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.

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