Lazard Asset Management LLC Sells 1,373 Shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU)

Lazard Asset Management LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) by 8.3% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 15,202 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 1,373 shares during the quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Prudential Financial were worth $1,801,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of PRU. Grove Bank & Trust raised its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 65.9% during the fourth quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 219 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 87 shares during the period. Centricity Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Prudential Financial in the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. CGC Financial Services LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 82.1% in the fourth quarter. CGC Financial Services LLC now owns 275 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 124 shares in the last quarter. Wingate Wealth Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Prudential Financial during the fourth quarter worth about $33,000. Finally, Hopwood Financial Services Inc. bought a new position in shares of Prudential Financial during the fourth quarter worth about $34,000. 56.83% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Prudential Financial

In other Prudential Financial news, EVP Andrew F. Sullivan sold 6,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $105.98, for a total value of $635,880.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 27,072 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,869,090.56. This represents a 18.14% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential bought 87,047 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $28.72 per share, with a total value of $2,499,989.84. Following the acquisition, the insider now directly owns 87,047 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,499,989.84. This represents a ? increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.25% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have weighed in on PRU. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price target on Prudential Financial from $120.00 to $117.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of Prudential Financial from $128.00 to $126.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Prudential Financial from $108.00 to $113.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of Prudential Financial from $136.00 to $128.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Finally, Piper Sandler decreased their price objective on Prudential Financial from $110.00 to $109.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 2nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $121.92.

Prudential Financial Stock Up 0.3%

Shares of PRU stock opened at $107.37 on Friday. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a 52-week low of $90.38 and a 52-week high of $130.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a current ratio of 0.16. The stock has a market cap of $38.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.37, a PEG ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 1.07. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $104.71 and its 200-day moving average is $113.97.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The financial services provider reported $3.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.18 by $0.11. Prudential Financial had a return on equity of 15.86% and a net margin of 4.01%. The company had revenue of $13.61 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.76 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $3.12 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was down 38.2% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 14.36 EPS for the current year.

Prudential Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 20th will be given a dividend of $1.35 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 20th. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.03%. Prudential Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 85.58%.

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.