Prudential Equity Research to Shut Down

By: E&P Staff The newspaper financial research world just got smaller.

Prudential Financial is shuttering its institutional brokerage division, which includes its research arm. Newspaper analyst Steven Barlow confirmed in a voicemail today that the division was closing, but he not be reached for further comment.

Prudential is citing the competitive landscape and the fact that much of the research for clients is distributed on the Web. The New York Times? Deal Book noted that sell-side research was tarnished during the scandals of the late 1990s dot-com boom.