MUFG Securities EMEA plc Has $10.05 Million Stake in Prudential Financial, Inc. $PRU

MUFG Securities EMEA plc boosted its position in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) by 1,221.6% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 89,048 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 82,310 shares during the period. MUFG Securities EMEA plc’s holdings in Prudential Financial were worth $10,052,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. VCI Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in Prudential Financial by 117.1% in the fourth quarter. VCI Wealth Management LLC now owns 19,292 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,178,000 after buying an additional 10,404 shares during the period. KBC Group NV raised its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 94.3% during the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 157,538 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $17,783,000 after purchasing an additional 76,461 shares during the period. Machina Capital S.A.S. acquired a new position in shares of Prudential Financial during the third quarter valued at about $1,285,000. Varma Mutual Pension Insurance Co raised its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 22.0% during the third quarter. Varma Mutual Pension Insurance Co now owns 108,839 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $11,291,000 after purchasing an additional 19,600 shares during the period. Finally, Munich Reinsurance Co Stock Corp in Munich raised its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 2,669.0% during the fourth quarter. Munich Reinsurance Co Stock Corp in Munich now owns 46,990 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $5,342,000 after purchasing an additional 45,293 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 56.83% of the company’s stock.

Prudential Financial Price Performance

PRU stock opened at $100.61 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $34.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.84 and a beta of 0.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a current ratio of 0.16. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a 52-week low of $91.89 and a 52-week high of $119.76. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $98.69 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $104.45.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The financial services provider reported $3.61 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.09 by $0.52. The business had revenue of $15.23 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.10 billion. Prudential Financial had a return on equity of 16.33% and a net margin of 5.83%.During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $3.29 EPS. Research analysts expect that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 13.75 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Prudential Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 11th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 26th will be issued a dividend of $1.40 per share. This represents a $5.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 26th. Prudential Financial’s payout ratio is currently 57.61%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on PRU. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of Prudential Financial from $133.00 to $127.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 4th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “underweight” rating and set a $92.00 price objective (down from $106.00) on shares of Prudential Financial in a report on Monday, May 4th. Mizuho upped their price objective on shares of Prudential Financial from $96.00 to $101.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Prudential Financial from $89.00 to $90.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Finally, Evercore reiterated a “negative” rating on shares of Prudential Financial in a report on Friday, March 6th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and six have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $101.50.

Prudential Financial Profile

Prudential Financial, Inc, headquartered in Newark, New Jersey, is a diversified financial services company with roots dating to 1875. The firm provides a range of insurance, retirement and investment products aimed at helping individual and institutional clients manage risk, accumulate and protect wealth, and plan for retirement. Prudential’s long history in life insurance and related financial services has positioned it as a major participant in the U.S. insurance market and a provider of services to a broad client base.

Prudential’s core business activities include individual life insurance, annuities, retirement solutions and group insurance products for employers.