Choreo LLC Has $2.57 Million Stock Position in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU)

Choreo LLC grew its stake in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) by 155.6% in the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 21,833 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 13,290 shares during the quarter. Choreo LLC’s holdings in Prudential Financial were worth $2,566,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in PRU. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Prudential Financial by 13.9% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 42,292,853 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $4,386,192,000 after purchasing an additional 5,154,865 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Prudential Financial in the fourth quarter valued at about $113,478,000. Swedbank AB bought a new position in Prudential Financial during the 1st quarter worth approximately $35,855,000. Schroder Investment Management Group lifted its holdings in Prudential Financial by 387.6% in the fourth quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 332,421 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $34,475,000 after buying an additional 264,247 shares during the period. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald Investment Advisors L.P. bought a new stake in shares of Prudential Financial during the 4th quarter valued at about $18,568,000. 56.83% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Prudential Financial

In related news, major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential purchased 652,884 shares of Prudential Financial stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 20th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $27.57 per share, for a total transaction of $18,000,011.88. Following the acquisition, the insider now owns 3,883,390 shares in the company, valued at approximately $107,065,062.30. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other Prudential Financial news, major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential acquired 652,884 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 20th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $27.57 per share, for a total transaction of $18,000,011.88. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 3,883,390 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $107,065,062.30. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Caroline Feeney sold 1,110 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $119.97, for a total transaction of $133,166.70. Following the completion of 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. Insiders own 0.31% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have commented on PRU shares. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of Prudential Financial from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and set a $113.00 price target for the company in a research note on Monday, August 12th. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price target on shares of Prudential Financial from $143.00 to $141.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, June 28th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective 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. UBS Group lifted their target price on Prudential Financial from $112.00 to $119.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 13th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reissued a “market perform” rating and issued a $121.00 price target on shares of Prudential Financial in a research report on Wednesday, August 21st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $120.83.

Prudential Financial Stock Performance

Shares of PRU stock opened at $114.65 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.13, a current ratio of 0.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $118.02 and a 200-day moving average price of $115.82. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a 52 week low of $87.95 and a 52 week high of $128.52. The firm has a market capitalization of $40.93 billion, a PE ratio of 19.50, a P/E/G ratio of 0.88 and a beta of 1.30.

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

Prudential Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 12th. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 20th will be issued a $1.30 dividend. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.54%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 20th. Prudential Financial’s dividend payout ratio 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.