United Services Automobile Association Invests $987,000 in Prudential Financial, Inc. $PRU

Key Points

• United Services Automobile Association acquired 8,970 shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. in Q1, valued at approximately $987,000.
• Prudential Financial's Q2 earnings exceeded analysts' expectations, reporting $3.58 earnings per share against a consensus of $3.22.
• The firm announced a quarterly dividend of $1.35 per share, with a projected annual yield of 5.1% and a payout ratio of 119.73%.

United Services Automobile Association bought a new position in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 8,970 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $987,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in PRU. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in shares of Prudential Financial by 11,280.3% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 867,865 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $96,923,000 after buying an additional 860,239 shares in the last quarter. Nuveen LLC bought a new position in shares of Prudential Financial in the first quarter worth approximately $90,010,000. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its position in Prudential Financial by 19.2% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 4,206,453 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $469,777,000 after purchasing an additional 678,028 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its position in Prudential Financial by 11.5% during the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 3,410,363 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $404,230,000 after purchasing an additional 352,335 shares during the period. Finally, Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH bought a new position in Prudential Financial during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,796,000. Institutional investors own 56.83% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential bought 1,675,978 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 16th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $28.64 per share, with a total value of $48,000,009.92. Following the completion of the purchase, the insider owned 3,168,461 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $90,744,723.04. The trade was a 112.29% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Ann M. Kappler sold 4,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, August 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $109.65, for a total transaction of $438,600.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 21,506 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,358,132.90. The trade was a 15.68% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.25% of the company's stock.

Prudential Financial Stock Performance

PRU stock traded down $0.05 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $106.94. 1,628,323 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,419,545. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a 52-week low of $90.38 and a 52-week high of $130.55. The stock has a market cap of $37.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.71, a PEG ratio of 0.95 and a beta of 1.07. The company has a current ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. The stock's 50-day moving average is $105.61 and its 200 day moving average is $105.44.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The financial services provider reported $3.58 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 business had revenue of $13.50 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $13.47 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $3.39 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was down 2.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts anticipate that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 14.36 EPS for the current year.

Prudential Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 11th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 19th were paid a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, August 19th. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.0%. Prudential Financial's dividend payout ratio is 119.73%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on PRU shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Prudential Financial from $126.00 to $136.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. UBS Group lowered 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, May 27th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on shares of Prudential Financial from $116.00 to $113.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 16th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Prudential Financial from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 2nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of Prudential Financial from $113.00 to $117.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, August 18th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $122.08.

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.