Northern Trust Corp Raises Stock Position in Prudential plc (NYSE:PUK)

Northern Trust Corp grew its stake in Prudential plc (NYSE:PUK - Free Report) by 2.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,733,772 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 34,344 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp owned approximately 0.13% of Prudential worth $27,636,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its stake in Prudential by 417.0% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,856 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 1,497 shares in the last quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Prudential in the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Advisors Preferred LLC purchased a new position in Prudential in the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in Prudential by 95.8% in the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,303 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $37,000 after buying an additional 1,127 shares in the last quarter. Finally, National Bank of Canada FI grew its stake in Prudential by 52.6% in the 4th quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 3,042 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $48,000 after buying an additional 1,049 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 1.90% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have commented on PUK. Citigroup reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Prudential in a research note on Tuesday, April 1st. StockNews.com raised shares of Prudential from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, March 22nd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy".

Prudential Stock Performance

Shares of Prudential stock opened at $22.22 on Monday. Prudential plc has a 52-week low of $14.39 and a 52-week high of $22.25. The stock has a market capitalization of $29.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.41 and a beta of 0.98. The company has a fifty day moving average of $20.54 and a 200-day moving average of $17.93.

Prudential Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 28th will be paid a $0.3258 dividend. This is a boost from Prudential's previous dividend of $0.24. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 28th. Prudential's dividend payout ratio is 28.02%.

Prudential Company Profile

Prudential plc, through its subsidiaries, provides life and health insurance, and asset management solutions to individuals in Asia and Africa. The company was founded in 1848 and is headquartered in Central, Hong Kong.

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