Raymond James & Associates Purchases 44,331 Shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU)

Raymond James & Associates raised its holdings in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU - Free Report) by 9.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 525,356 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 44,331 shares during the quarter. Raymond James & Associates owned about 0.15% of Prudential Financial worth $54,485,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in PRU. First Financial Corp IN boosted its position in shares of Prudential Financial by 13.7% during the fourth quarter. First Financial Corp IN now owns 848 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $88,000 after buying an additional 102 shares during the last quarter. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd raised its holdings in Prudential Financial by 17.2% during the fourth quarter. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd now owns 868,535 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $90,076,000 after acquiring an additional 127,772 shares during the period. LVW Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Prudential Financial in the 4th quarter worth approximately $231,000. Mutual Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Prudential Financial by 1.3% during the fourth quarter. Mutual Advisors LLC now owns 28,006 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,904,000 after acquiring an additional 366 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Premier Path Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Prudential Financial during the 4th quarter valued at about $367,000. 56.83% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Prudential Financial Stock Performance

PRU traded up $0.38 on Thursday, reaching $117.40. The stock had a trading volume of 1,169,489 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,578,307. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a 12-month low of $77.22 and a 12-month high of $117.92. The company has a current ratio of 0.13, a quick ratio of 0.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. The business's 50-day moving average price is $108.53 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $101.15. The company has a market cap of $42.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.85 and a beta of 1.36.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 6th. The financial services provider reported $2.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.67 by ($0.09). Prudential Financial had a net margin of 4.89% and a return on equity of 14.52%. The business had revenue of $13.02 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $12.99 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.42 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 6.7% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts forecast that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 13.4 earnings per share for the current year.

Prudential Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 20th were issued a $1.30 dividend. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.43%. This is a positive change from Prudential Financial's previous quarterly dividend of $1.25. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 16th. Prudential Financial's payout ratio is presently 77.73%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have commented on PRU shares. Raymond James downgraded shares of Prudential Financial from a "strong-buy" rating to a "market perform" rating in a report on Friday, February 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $118.00 price objective (down previously from $119.00) on shares of Prudential Financial in a research note on Wednesday, January 3rd. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of Prudential Financial from $105.00 to $109.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 7th. TheStreet raised shares of Prudential Financial from a "c+" rating to an "a-" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 6th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Prudential Financial from $108.00 to $112.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, February 12th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and ten have given a hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $105.60.

Insider Buying and Selling at Prudential Financial

In other news, SVP Robert Axel sold 6,436 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $111.86, for a total value of $719,930.96. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 7,901 shares in the company, valued at approximately $883,805.86. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other Prudential Financial news, SVP Robert Axel sold 6,436 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $111.86, for a total transaction of $719,930.96. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 7,901 shares in the company, valued at approximately $883,805.86. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Ann M. Kappler sold 7,222 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $108.39, for a total transaction of $782,792.58. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 24,381 shares in the company, valued at $2,642,656.59. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 29,255 shares of company stock worth $3,215,664 in the last ninety days. 0.31% of the stock is owned by insiders.

About Prudential Financial

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.