Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. Buys 171 Shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU)

Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) by 0.7% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 26,414 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 171 shares during the period. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd.’s holdings in Prudential Financial were worth $3,131,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Nordea Investment Management AB raised its position in Prudential Financial by 176.8% during the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 1,041,420 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $123,804,000 after acquiring an additional 665,180 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in Prudential Financial in the 4th quarter valued at about $76,303,000. Amundi grew its holdings in Prudential Financial by 32.7% during the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 1,535,514 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $181,851,000 after purchasing an additional 378,266 shares during the period. FMR LLC raised its stake in Prudential Financial by 31.3% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,444,288 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $174,903,000 after buying an additional 344,254 shares during the period. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Prudential Financial by 4.1% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 8,662,679 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,047,872,000 after acquiring an additional 341,787 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 56.83% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential purchased 87,047 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was bought at an average cost 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,499,989.84. This represents a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Andrew F. Sullivan sold 6,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $105.98, for a total value of $635,880.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 27,072 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,869,090.56. This trade represents a 18.14 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.31% of the company’s stock.

Prudential Financial Trading Up 1.0 %

Shares of Prudential Financial stock opened at $114.32 on Wednesday. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $113.44 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $119.01. The company has a market capitalization of $40.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.30, a PEG ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 1.28. The company has a quick ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a 12-month low of $104.45 and a 12-month high of $130.55.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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%. On average, analysts forecast that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 14.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Prudential Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 13th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 18th were paid a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 18th. This is a positive change from Prudential Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.72%. Prudential Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 72.29%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently weighed in on PRU. BMO Capital Markets began coverage on Prudential Financial in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. They issued an “underperform” rating and a $101.00 price target on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their target price on shares of Prudential Financial from $129.00 to $125.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Prudential Financial from $113.00 to $118.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. TD Cowen raised their price objective on shares of Prudential Financial from $130.00 to $133.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 27th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on Prudential Financial from $149.00 to $152.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. 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 issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $126.15.

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.