Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. Grows Holdings in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU)

Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) by 389.6% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 25,161 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 20,022 shares during the period. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd.’s holdings in Prudential Financial were worth $2,949,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Cullinan Associates Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 2,355.0% during the first quarter. Cullinan Associates Inc. now owns 151,598 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $17,798,000 after purchasing an additional 145,423 shares during the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI raised its stake in Prudential Financial by 44.9% during the first quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 230,044 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $27,327,000 after buying an additional 71,274 shares during the last quarter. Greenwood Capital Associates LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Prudential Financial in the fourth quarter worth $1,087,000. Crestline Management LP increased its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 50.0% during the fourth quarter. Crestline Management LP now owns 60,000 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $6,223,000 after acquiring an additional 20,000 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nomura Holdings Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Prudential Financial in the 4th quarter worth about $761,000. Institutional investors own 56.83% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently commented on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of Prudential Financial from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and set a $113.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Monday, August 12th. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price target on shares of Prudential Financial from $143.00 to $141.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, June 28th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on Prudential Financial from $123.00 to $122.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, August 19th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reissued a “market perform” rating and issued a $121.00 target price on shares of Prudential Financial in a report on Wednesday, August 21st. Finally, Citigroup upped their price target on Prudential Financial from $104.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 23rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Prudential Financial presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $120.83.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Prudential Financial news, EVP Ann M. Kappler sold 2,839 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $113.43, for a total value of $322,027.77. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 14,535 shares in the company, valued at $1,648,705.05. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other Prudential Financial news, EVP Ann M. Kappler sold 2,839 shares of Prudential Financial stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $113.43, for a total transaction of $322,027.77. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 14,535 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,648,705.05. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Caroline Feeney sold 1,110 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $119.97, for a total transaction of $133,166.70. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 10,175 shares in the company, valued at $1,220,694.75. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.31% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Prudential Financial Stock Up 0.6 %

PRU stock opened at $119.44 on Thursday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $117.88 and its two-hundred day moving average is $116.15. The company has a market cap of $42.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.31, a P/E/G ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 1.30. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $87.95 and a fifty-two week high of $128.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 0.13 and a current ratio of 0.13.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The financial services provider reported $3.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.43 by ($0.04). Prudential Financial had a return on equity of 16.00% and a net margin of 4.86%. The business had revenue of $13.84 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $13.78 billion. As a group, analysts forecast that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 13.31 earnings per share for the current year.

Prudential Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 12th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 20th were paid a $1.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, August 20th. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.35%. Prudential Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 88.44%.

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.