820 Shares in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) Acquired by Glassy Mountain Advisors Inc.

Glassy Mountain Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU – Get Rating) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 820 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $82,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of PRU. Wagner Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Prudential Financial in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Fairfield Bush & CO. acquired a new position in Prudential Financial in the 1st quarter valued at $36,000. Pacific Center for Financial Services acquired a new position in Prudential Financial in the second quarter valued at $31,000. Exos TFP Holdings LLC purchased a new position in shares of Prudential Financial during the 3rd quarter worth about $36,000. Finally, Tsfg LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 45.7% in the 3rd quarter. Tsfg LLC now owns 459 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 144 shares during the last quarter. 56.33% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently commented on PRU shares. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered shares of Prudential Financial from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and cut their price target for the company from $98.00 to $96.00 in a report on Monday, January 9th. StockNews.com initiated coverage on Prudential Financial in a research report on Thursday. They issued a “hold” rating on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and set a $110.00 target price on shares of Prudential Financial in a research report on Thursday, February 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on shares of Prudential Financial from $118.00 to $114.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 8th. Finally, Barclays dropped their target price on Prudential Financial from $106.00 to $105.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 10th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and nine have issued a hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $103.00.

Insider Transactions at Prudential Financial

In related news, EVP Andrew F. Sullivan sold 4,126 shares of Prudential Financial stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $99.20, for a total transaction of $409,299.20. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 12,241 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,214,307.20. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other Prudential Financial news, EVP Andrew F. Sullivan sold 4,126 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $99.20, for a total value of $409,299.20. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 12,241 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,214,307.20. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Andrew F. Sullivan sold 11,405 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $100.95, for a total transaction of $1,151,334.75. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 12,300 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,241,685. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.31% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Prudential Financial Trading Down 5.1 %

Shares of PRU traded down $4.17 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $78.02. The stock had a trading volume of 16,323,702 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,275,648. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $76.90 and a fifty-two week high of $122.54. The company has a current ratio of 0.07, a quick ratio of 0.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16. The firm has a market cap of $28.56 billion, a P/E ratio of -19.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.54 and a beta of 1.41. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $98.36 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $98.87.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU – Get Rating) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 7th. The financial services provider reported $2.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.57 by ($0.15). Prudential Financial had a positive return on equity of 13.31% and a negative net margin of 2.33%. The firm had revenue of $12.65 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $12.78 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $3.18 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 12.2 EPS for the current year.

Prudential Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 16th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 21st were issued a $1.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 17th. This represents a $5.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.41%. This is a positive change from Prudential Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.20. Prudential Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -126.90%.

Prudential Financial announced that its board has approved a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, February 7th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the financial services provider to repurchase up to 2.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are usually a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Prudential Financial Profile

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Prudential Financial, Inc engages in the provision of insurance, investment management, and other financial products and services to both individual and institutional customers. It operates through the following segments: PGIM, U.S. Businesses, International Businesses, Closed Block, and Corporate and Others.