WBI Investments LLC Sells 21,314 Shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU)

WBI Investments LLC lowered its stake in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU - Free Report) by 51.2% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 20,320 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 21,314 shares during the period. WBI Investments LLC's holdings in Prudential Financial were worth $2,107,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Choreo LLC lifted its position in Prudential Financial by 163.5% during the fourth quarter. Choreo LLC now owns 6,940 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $720,000 after buying an additional 4,306 shares during the period. FMR LLC lifted its position in Prudential Financial by 2.9% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,315,215 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $124,801,000 after buying an additional 36,599 shares during the period. Arvest Investments Inc. purchased a new position in Prudential Financial during the fourth quarter valued at $2,112,000. Tyche Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Prudential Financial in the 4th quarter worth about $815,000. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Prudential Financial by 14.5% in the 3rd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 268,728 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $25,500,000 after purchasing an additional 34,054 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 56.83% of the company's stock.

Prudential Financial Stock Performance

Shares of Prudential Financial stock traded up $1.65 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $119.49. 1,568,598 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,506,048. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $114.29 and a 200 day moving average price of $106.76. The firm has a market capitalization of $42.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.04, a P/E/G ratio of 0.88 and a beta of 1.35. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a one year low of $78.40 and a one year high of $121.39. The company has a quick ratio of 0.13, a current ratio of 0.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The financial services provider reported $3.12 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $3.16 by ($0.04). The firm had revenue of $15.01 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.50 billion. Prudential Financial had a net margin of 3.76% and a return on equity of 15.50%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 69.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.66 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts expect that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 13.42 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Prudential Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 13th. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 21st will be paid a dividend of $1.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 20th. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.35%. Prudential Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 88.44%.

Insider Activity at Prudential Financial

In related news, EVP Ann M. Kappler sold 7,222 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $108.39, for a total transaction of $782,792.58. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 24,381 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,642,656.59. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, EVP Ann M. Kappler sold 7,222 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $108.39, for a total value of $782,792.58. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 24,381 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,642,656.59. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, SVP Timothy L. Schmidt sold 7,912 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $108.13, for a total value of $855,524.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 14,754 shares in the company, valued at $1,595,350.02. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 164,536 shares of company stock worth $19,245,606. 0.34% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently issued reports on PRU. Jefferies Financial Group raised Prudential Financial from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $121.00 to $143.00 in a research report on Wednesday. Raymond James lowered Prudential Financial from a "strong-buy" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research report on Friday, February 9th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Prudential Financial from $100.00 to $106.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Piper Sandler reduced their price objective on Prudential Financial from $125.00 to $121.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Monday, May 6th. Finally, TheStreet upgraded Prudential Financial from a "c+" rating to an "a-" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 6th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Prudential Financial presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $115.25.

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.

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