Goelzer Investment Management Inc. Lowers Stake in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU)

Goelzer Investment Management Inc. cut its position in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) by 6.6% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 61,811 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 4,372 shares during the period. Goelzer Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Prudential Financial were worth $7,485,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in Prudential Financial by 13.9% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 42,292,853 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $4,386,192,000 after acquiring an additional 5,154,865 shares in the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc increased its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 9.4% in the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 3,542,400 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $415,134,000 after purchasing an additional 305,143 shares during the last quarter. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd boosted its stake in Prudential Financial by 2.8% during the second quarter. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd now owns 1,237,537 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $145,027,000 after buying an additional 34,160 shares during the last quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. grew its holdings in Prudential Financial by 8.8% during the 2nd quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 1,025,527 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $120,181,000 after buying an additional 82,620 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. increased its stake in Prudential Financial by 7.2% in the 1st quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. now owns 926,641 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $108,788,000 after acquiring an additional 62,578 shares during the last quarter. 56.83% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

PRU has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Prudential Financial from $112.00 to $119.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 13th. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Prudential Financial from $104.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Argus upgraded Prudential Financial to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price objective on Prudential Financial from $143.00 to $141.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, June 28th. Finally, Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on Prudential Financial from $123.00 to $122.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 19th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $123.36.

Prudential Financial Trading Up 3.4 %

Shares of NYSE:PRU traded up $4.09 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $122.99. 1,889,567 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,500,824. The firm has a market cap of $44.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.92, a P/E/G ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 0.13 and a quick ratio of 0.13. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a 1 year low of $87.95 and a 1 year high of $128.52. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $116.93 and its 200 day simple moving average is $116.91.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last issued its quarterly earnings results 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). The business had revenue of $13.84 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $13.78 billion. Prudential Financial had a return on equity of 16.00% and a net margin of 4.86%. Equities research analysts forecast that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 13.3 EPS for the current year.

Prudential Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 12th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 20th were issued a $1.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, August 20th. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.23%. Prudential Financial’s payout ratio is 88.44%.

Insider Transactions at Prudential Financial

In related news, EVP Ann M. Kappler sold 2,839 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 14,535 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,648,705.05. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other news, EVP Ann M. Kappler sold 2,839 shares of Prudential Financial stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $113.43, for a total value of $322,027.77. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 14,535 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,648,705.05. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Caroline Feeney sold 1,110 shares of Prudential Financial 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 completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 10,175 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,220,694.75. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.31% of the company’s stock.

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.