Polymer Capital Management US LLC Takes Position in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU)

Polymer Capital Management US LLC acquired a new position in shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor acquired 4,344 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $515,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Savant Capital LLC boosted its stake in shares of Prudential Financial by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. Savant Capital LLC now owns 14,382 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,705,000 after purchasing an additional 83 shares in the last quarter. Grove Bank & Trust boosted its position in Prudential Financial by 65.9% in the fourth quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 219 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 87 shares in the last quarter. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC increased its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC now owns 9,417 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,116,000 after buying an additional 91 shares in the last quarter. Asset Dedication LLC lifted its stake in shares of Prudential Financial by 28.4% in the 4th quarter. Asset Dedication LLC now owns 420 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $50,000 after acquiring an additional 93 shares during the last quarter. Finally, RNC Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 3.3% during the 4th quarter. RNC Capital Management LLC now owns 2,990 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $354,000 after acquiring an additional 95 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 56.83% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Prudential Financial

In other Prudential Financial news, major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential acquired 87,047 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $28.72 per share, for a total transaction of $2,499,989.84. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider now owns 87,047 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,499,989.84. This represents a ? increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Andrew F. Sullivan sold 6,000 shares of Prudential Financial stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $105.98, for a total transaction of $635,880.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 27,072 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,869,090.56. This represents a 18.14 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.31% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Prudential Financial Trading Down 8.1 %

Shares of PRU stock opened at $96.27 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $34.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.89, a PEG ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 1.11. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $87.90 and a fifty-two week high of $130.55. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $112.03 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $118.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a current ratio of 0.16.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The financial services provider reported $2.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.36 by ($0.40). Prudential Financial had a net margin of 4.01% and a return on equity of 15.86%. Research analysts forecast that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 14.36 earnings per share for the current year.

Prudential Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 13th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th were paid a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 18th. This is an increase from Prudential Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.61%. Prudential Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 72.29%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

PRU has been the subject of several research reports. UBS Group dropped their target price on Prudential Financial from $130.00 to $122.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their target price on shares of Prudential Financial from $129.00 to $125.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on shares of Prudential Financial from $136.00 to $128.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Prudential Financial from $113.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets began coverage on Prudential Financial in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. They set an “underperform” rating and a $101.00 target price for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $126.08.

Prudential Financial 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.