Prudential Financial, Inc. $PRU Stock: Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. Decreases Holdings

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. decreased its position in shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) by 3.5% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 735,613 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 26,880 shares during the quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc.’s holdings in Prudential Financial were worth $83,551,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in PRU. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Prudential Financial in the 2nd quarter valued at about $3,507,481,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new position in Prudential Financial during the second quarter worth approximately $209,055,000. Bank of America Corp DE purchased a new stake in Prudential Financial in the second quarter valued at approximately $208,957,000. Deutsche Bank AG purchased a new stake in Prudential Financial in the second quarter valued at approximately $157,752,000. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership boosted its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 95.3% in the first quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 2,556,748 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $249,769,000 after acquiring an additional 1,247,371 shares during the period. 56.83% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of Prudential Financial from $127.00 to $124.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 22nd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price target on shares of Prudential Financial from $123.00 to $119.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 16th. Piper Sandler decreased their price target on shares of Prudential Financial from $128.00 to $120.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, October 12th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on shares of Prudential Financial from $104.00 to $103.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 28th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price objective on shares of Prudential Financial from $116.00 to $109.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, October 12th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and six have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus price target of $111.27.

Prudential Financial Price Performance

Prudential Financial stock opened at $118.81 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 0.16 and a quick ratio of 0.16. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $116.83 and a 200-day simple moving average of $108.81. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a 12 month low of $91.89 and a 12 month high of $127.72. The stock has a market capitalization of $40.99 billion, a PE ratio of 7.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.98 and a beta of 0.85.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, November 3rd. The financial services provider reported $3.77 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.34 by $0.43. Prudential Financial had a net margin of 6.51% and a return on equity of 16.68%. The company had revenue of $13.49 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.66 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $4.26 EPS. Equities analysts predict that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 13.51 earnings per share for the current year.

Prudential Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 25th were paid a $1.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, August 25th. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.7%. Prudential Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 50.72%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Prudential Financial news, EVP Ann Kappler sold 7,652 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $125.01, for a total transaction of $956,576.52. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 14,407 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,801,019.07. This represents a 34.69% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.05% of the company’s stock.

About Prudential Financial

Prudential Financial, Inc (NYSE: PRU) is a global financial services company that provides insurance, retirement, investment management and related financial products. Founded in Newark, New Jersey, in 1875, the company serves individuals, businesses and institutional investors through a range of businesses and distribution channels.

In the United States, Prudential offers life insurance, annuities, retirement plans and employee benefits, including group life, disability and dental insurance.