Hexagon Capital Partners LLC Lowers Stock Position in Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU)

Hexagon Capital Partners LLC reduced its stake in shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) by 20.1% in the first quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 3,352 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 841 shares during the quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC’s holdings in Prudential Financial were worth $394,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Choreo LLC grew its position in Prudential Financial by 163.5% during the fourth quarter. Choreo LLC now owns 6,940 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $720,000 after acquiring an additional 4,306 shares during the last quarter. Greenwood Capital Associates LLC purchased a new position in Prudential Financial in the 4th quarter worth $1,087,000. Crestline Management LP lifted its stake in Prudential Financial by 50.0% in the fourth quarter. Crestline Management LP now owns 60,000 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $6,223,000 after purchasing an additional 20,000 shares during the last quarter. Nomura Holdings Inc. purchased a new stake in Prudential Financial during the fourth quarter valued at about $761,000. Finally, Brookstone Capital Management increased its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 1,635.0% in the first quarter. Brookstone Capital Management now owns 87,201 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $10,237,000 after buying an additional 82,175 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 56.83% of the company’s stock.

Prudential Financial Price Performance

PRU stock opened at $117.53 on Tuesday. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $116.38 and a 200 day moving average of $110.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 0.13 and a quick ratio of 0.13. The company has a market cap of $42.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.99, a PEG ratio of 0.88 and a beta of 1.34. Prudential Financial, Inc. has a 1 year low of $87.57 and a 1 year high of $121.39.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The financial services provider reported $3.12 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.16 by ($0.04). Prudential Financial had a net margin of 3.76% and a return on equity of 15.50%. The firm had revenue of $15.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.50 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.66 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 69.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Prudential Financial, Inc. will post 13.41 EPS for the current year.

Prudential Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 13th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 21st were issued a dividend of $1.30 per share. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.42%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 20th. Prudential Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 88.44%.

Insider Transactions at Prudential Financial

In other Prudential Financial news, major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential acquired 652,884 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 20th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $27.57 per share, for a total transaction of $18,000,011.88. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider now owns 3,883,390 shares in the company, valued at $107,065,062.30. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential bought 652,884 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 20th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $27.57 per share, with a total value of $18,000,011.88. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider now owns 3,883,390 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $107,065,062.30. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Robert Falzon sold 130,092 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $118.57, for a total value of $15,425,008.44. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 202,083 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $23,960,981.31. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently weighed in on PRU. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Prudential Financial from $109.00 to $117.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, April 15th. Jefferies Financial Group cut their target price on shares of Prudential Financial from $143.00 to $141.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Prudential Financial from $100.00 to $106.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on shares of Prudential Financial from $112.00 to $118.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. Finally, Evercore ISI increased their target price on shares of Prudential Financial from $115.00 to $116.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $115.08.

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.