Prudential Financial Inc. Has $24.74 Million Stock Holdings in TransUnion (NYSE:TRU)

Prudential Financial Inc. boosted its position in TransUnion (NYSE:TRU) by 2,390.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 258,611 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 248,225 shares during the period. Prudential Financial Inc.’s holdings in TransUnion were worth $24,739,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in shares of TransUnion by 2.5% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 677,692 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $70,954,000 after purchasing an additional 16,445 shares during the period. Citigroup Inc. increased its stake in TransUnion by 3.3% during the 3rd quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 102,297 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $10,710,000 after purchasing an additional 3,299 shares in the last quarter. Cerity Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of TransUnion by 547.1% in the third quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 41,608 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $4,356,000 after buying an additional 35,178 shares in the last quarter. Algert Global LLC grew its holdings in shares of TransUnion by 107.2% during the third quarter. Algert Global LLC now owns 6,217 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $651,000 after buying an additional 3,217 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Larson Financial Group LLC grew its holdings in shares of TransUnion by 50.0% during the third quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 3,725 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $390,000 after buying an additional 1,242 shares during the last quarter.

Insider Buying and Selling at TransUnion

In related news, EVP Venkat Achanta sold 1,821 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $95.74, for a total value of $174,342.54. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 105,443 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,095,112.82. This trade represents a 1.70 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Steven M. Chaouki sold 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $93.60, for a total transaction of $93,600.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 59,488 shares in the company, valued at $5,568,076.80. The trade was a 1.65 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 4,021 shares of company stock valued at $383,041 over the last three months. 0.22% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently weighed in on TRU. William Blair restated an “outperform” rating on shares of TransUnion in a report on Monday. UBS Group raised their target price on TransUnion from $102.00 to $104.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on TransUnion from $135.00 to $126.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 10th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on TransUnion from $130.00 to $127.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of TransUnion in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $114.08.

TransUnion Stock Down 2.2 %

TRU opened at $85.71 on Thursday. TransUnion has a twelve month low of $66.07 and a twelve month high of $113.17. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $92.18 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $97.32. The stock has a market cap of $16.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 58.70, a PEG ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 1.70. The company has a quick ratio of 1.70, a current ratio of 1.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18.

TransUnion (NYSE:TRU) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The business services provider reported $0.83 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.97 by ($0.14). TransUnion had a net margin of 6.80% and a return on equity of 15.85%. The firm had revenue of $1.04 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.03 billion. As a group, equities analysts expect that TransUnion will post 3.99 earnings per share for the current year.

TransUnion announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback plan on Thursday, February 13th that authorizes the company to buyback $500.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the business services provider to purchase up to 2.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

TransUnion Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 27th were paid a $0.115 dividend. This is a boost from TransUnion’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.11. This represents a $0.46 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.54%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 27th. TransUnion’s payout ratio is currently 31.51%.

TransUnion Profile

TransUnion operates as a global consumer credit reporting agency that provides risk and information solutions. The company operates through U.S. Markets, International, and Consumer Interactive segments. The U.S. Markets segment provides consumer reports, actionable insights, and analytic services to businesses, which uses its services to acquire new customers; assess consumer ability to pay for services; identify cross-selling opportunities; measure and manage debt portfolio risk; collect debt; verify consumer identities; and mitigate fraud risk.