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THE PRUDENTIAL SERIES FUND
PSF PGIM Total Return Bond Portfolio 
SUMMARY PROSPECTUS • May 1, 2024

Before you invest, you may want to review the Portfolio’s Prospectus, which contains more information about the Portfolio and its risks. You can find the Portfolio's Prospectus, Statement of Additional Information (SAI), Annual Report and other information about the Portfolio online at www.prudential.com/variableinsuranceportfolios. You can also get this information at no cost by calling 1-800-346-3778 or by sending an e-mail to: service@prudential.com. The Portfolio’s Prospectus and SAI, both dated May 1, 2024, as supplemented and amended from time to time, and the Portfolio’s most recent shareholder report, dated December 31, 2023 are all hereby incorporated by reference into (legally made a part of) this Summary Prospectus.
INVESTMENT OBJECTIVE
The investment objective of the Portfolio is a high level of income over a longer term while providing reasonable safety of capital.
PORTFOLIO FEES AND EXPENSES
The table below shows the fees and expenses that you may pay if you invest in shares of the Portfolio. The table does not include Contract charges. Because Contract charges are not included, the total fees and expenses that you will incur will be higher than the fees and expenses set forth in the table. See your Contract prospectus for more information about Contract charges.
Annual Portfolio Operating Expenses (expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment)
 
 
 
Class I Shares
Class III Shares
Management Fees
0.40%
0.40%
+ Distribution and/or Service Fees (12b-1 Fees)
None
0.25%
+ Other Expenses
0.03%
0.03%
= Total Annual Portfolio Operating Expenses
0.43%
0.68%
Example.  The following example is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in the Portfolio with the cost of investing in other mutual funds. The table does not include Contract charges. Because Contract charges are not included, the total fees and expenses that you will incur will be higher than the fees and expenses set forth in the example. See your Contract prospectus for more information about Contract charges.
The example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Portfolio for the time periods indicated and then redeem all of your shares at the end of those periods. The example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the Portfolio’s operating expenses remain the same. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions, your costs would be:
 
1 Year
3 Years
5 Years
10 Years
PSF PGIM Total Return Bond Portfolio Class I Shares
$44
$138
$241
$542
PSF PGIM Total Return Bond Portfolio Class III Shares
$69
$218
$379
$847
Portfolio Turnover.  The Portfolio pays transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or turns over its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs. These costs, which are not reflected in annual portfolio operating expenses or in the example, affect the Portfolio's performance. During the Portfolio's most recent fiscal year ended December 31, the Portfolio's portfolio turnover rate was 224% of the average value of its portfolio.
INVESTMENTS, RISKS AND PERFORMANCE
Principal Investment Strategies.  In pursuing its investment objective, the Portfolio normally invests at least 80% of its assets (net assets plus any borrowings made for investment purposes) in bonds.
The Portfolio normally invests at least 70% of its investable assets in high-grade debt obligations and high-quality money market investments. The Portfolio will normally invest in intermediate and long-term debt obligations, but will adjust the mix of its short-term, intermediate-term and long-term debt obligations in an attempt to benefit from price appreciation
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when interest rates go down and to incur smaller declines when interest rates go up. In addition, the Portfolio may also invest up to 30% of its assets in lower rated securities which are riskier and considered speculative (sometimes referred to as junk bonds). The Portfolio also may invest up to 20% of its total assets in debt securities issued outside the US by US or foreign issuers whether or not such securities are denominated in the US dollar. The Portfolio may invest in mortgage-related securities and asset-backed securities, including collateralized debt obligations (CDOs), collateralized loan obligations and other credit-related asset-backed securities. No more than 20% of the Portfolio's net assets may be invested in CDOs. Within this limitation, the Portfolio will primarily invest in CDOs rated AAA or AA by a major rating service.
The Portfolio may also enter into short sales against-the-box. No more than 25% of the Portfolio's net assets may be used as collateral or segregated for purposes of securing a short sale obligation.
The Portfolio may participate with certain other Portfolios of the Trust in a joint repurchase account under an order obtained from the SEC. The Portfolio may also invest up to 30% of its net assets in reverse repurchase agreements and dollar rolls. The Portfolio will not use more than 30% of its net assets in connection with reverse repurchase transactions and dollar rolls.
In managing the Portfolio’s assets, the Portfolio’s subadviser, PGIM Fixed Income, uses a combination of top-down economic analysis and bottom-up research in conjunction with proprietary quantitative models and risk management systems. In the top-down economic analysis, the subadviser develops views on economic, policy and market trends. In its bottom-up research, the subadviser develops an internal rating and outlook on issuers. The rating and outlook are determined based on a thorough review of the financial health and trends of the issuer. The subadviser may also consider investment factors such as expected total return, yield, spread, and potential for price appreciation as well as credit quality, maturity and risk. The Portfolio may invest in a security based upon the expected total return rather than the yield of such security.
The subadviser may invest up to 20% of the Portfolio’s total assets in debt securities issued outside the US by US or foreign issuers whether or not such securities are denominated in the US dollar.
Principal Risks of Investing in the Portfolio. The risks summarized below are the principal risks of investing in the Portfolio. The relative significance of the risks summarized below may change over time. All investments have risks to some degree, and it is possible that you could lose money by investing in the Portfolio. An investment in the Portfolio is not a deposit with a bank and is not insured or guaranteed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or any other government agency. While the Portfolio makes every effort to achieve its objective, the Portfolio cannot guarantee success. To the extent the Portfolio invests in underlying investment companies or other underlying portfolios, the Portfolio may be exposed to these risks directly through securities and other investments held directly by the Portfolio or indirectly through investments made by underlying portfolios in which the Portfolio invests.
Fixed Income Securities Risk. Investment in fixed income securities involves a variety of risks, including that: an issuer or guarantor of a security will be unable or unwilling to pay obligations when due; due to decreases in liquidity, the Portfolio may be unable to sell its securities holdings within a reasonable time at the price it values the security or at any price; and the Portfolio’s investment may decrease in value when interest rates rise. Volatility in interest rates and in fixed income markets may increase the risk that the Portfolio’s investment in fixed income securities will go down in value. In recent years, the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) began implementing increases to the federal funds interest rate and there may be further rate increases. To the extent rates increase substantially and/or rapidly, a Portfolio with significant investment in fixed income investments may be subject to significant losses. Changes in interest rates may also affect the liquidity of the Portfolio’s investments in fixed income securities.
High Yield Risk. Investments in fixed income instruments rated below investment grade and unrated instruments of similar credit quality (i.e., high yield securities or junk bonds) may be more sensitive to interest rate, credit, call, and liquidity risks than investments in investment grade securities, and have predominantly speculative characteristics. An economic downturn generally leads to a higher non-payment rate, and a high yield investment may lose significant value before a default occurs.
Foreign Investment Risk. Foreign markets tend to be more volatile than US markets and are generally not subject to regulatory requirements comparable to those in the US. Foreign securities include investments in securities of foreign issuers denominated in foreign currencies, as well as securities of foreign issuers denominated in US dollars and American Depositary Receipts. Foreign investment risk includes the risk that: changes in currency exchange rates may affect the value of foreign securities held by the Portfolio; foreign markets generally are more volatile than, and generally are not subject to regulatory requirements comparable to, US markets; foreign financial reporting and tax standards usually differ from those in the US; foreign exchanges are often less liquid than US markets; political or social developments may adversely affect the value of foreign securities; foreign holdings may be subject to special taxation and limitations on repatriating investment proceeds; and certain events in foreign markets may adversely affect foreign and domestic issuers, including, among others, military conflict, geopolitical developments, interruptions in the global supply chain, natural disasters, and outbreaks of infectious diseases.

Asset-Backed and/or Mortgage-Backed Securities Risk. Asset-backed and mortgage-backed securities primarily are fixed income securities that represent an interest in an underlying pool of assets, such as credit card receivables or, in the case of mortgage-backed securities, mortgage loans. Like fixed income securities, asset-backed and mortgage-backed securities are subject to interest rate risk, liquidity risk, and credit risk, which may be heightened in connection with investments in loans to subprime borrowers. Certain asset-backed and mortgage-backed securities are subject to the risk that those obligations will be repaid sooner than expected or later than expected, either of which may result in lower-than-expected returns. Mortgage-backed securities, because they are backed by mortgage loans, are also subject to risks related to real estate, and securities backed by private-issued mortgages may experience higher rates of default on the underlying mortgages than securities backed by government-issued mortgages.
Bank Loan Investments Risk. A Portfolio's ability to receive payments of principal and interest and other amounts in connection with loans (whether through participations, assignments or otherwise) will depend primarily on the financial condition of the borrower. The failure by the Portfolio to receive scheduled interest or principal payments on a loan because of a default, bankruptcy or any other reason would adversely affect the income of the Portfolio and would likely reduce the value of its assets. Even with loans secured by collateral, there is the risk that the value of the collateral may decline, may be insufficient to meet the obligations of the borrower, or be difficult to liquidate. In the event of a default, the Portfolio may have difficulty collecting on any collateral and would not have the ability to collect on any collateral for an uncollateralized loan. Further, the Portfolio's access to collateral, if any, may be limited by bankruptcy laws. Loans that are secured and senior to other debtholders of a borrower tend to have more favorable loss recovery rates as compared to more junior types of below investment grade debt obligations, and junior loans can involve a higher degree of risk than more senior loans. In addition, loan participations generally are subject to restrictions on transfer, and only limited opportunities may exist to sell loan participations in secondary markets. As a result, it may be difficult for the Portfolio to value loans or sell loans at an acceptable price when it wants to sell them. Loans trade in an over-the-counter market, and confirmation and settlement, which are effected through standardized procedures and documentation, may have an impact on the length and timing of completing trades. To the extent the Portfolio invests in loans of non-US issuers, the risks of investing in non-US issuers are applicable. Loans may not be considered to be securities and as a result may not benefit from the protections of the federal securities laws, including anti-fraud protections and those with respect to the use of material non-public information, so that purchasers, such as the Portfolio, may not have the benefit of these protections.
Collateralized Debt Obligations Risk (CDO): The risks of an investment in a CDO, which can include collateralized loan obligations (CLOs), depend largely on the quality and type of the collateral and the tranche of the CDO in which the Portfolio invests. Investments in CDOs may be illiquid. In addition to the risks associated with debt instruments (e.g., interest rate risk and credit risk), CDOs carry additional risks including, but not limited to: (i) the possibility that distributions from collateral will not be adequate to make interest or other payments; (ii) the quality of the collateral may decline in value or default; (iii) the possibility that the Portfolio may invest in CDOs that are subordinate to other classes of the issuer’s securities; and (iv) the complex structure of the security may not be fully understood at the time of investment and may produce disputes with the issuer or unexpected investment results.
Covenant-Lite Risk. Some of the loans or debt obligations in which the Portfolio may invest or get exposure to may be covenant-lite, which means the loans or obligations contain fewer financial maintenance covenants than other loans or obligations (in some cases, none) and do not include terms that allow the lender to monitor the borrower’s performance and declare a default if certain criteria are breached. An investment by the Portfolio in a covenant-lite loan may potentially hinder the ability to reprice credit risk associated with the issuer and reduce the ability to restructure a problematic loan and mitigate potential loss. The Portfolio may also experience difficulty, expenses or delays in enforcing its rights on its holdings of covenant-lite loans or obligations. As a result of these risks, the Portfolio’s exposure to losses may be increased, which could result in an adverse impact on the Portfolio’s net income and net asset value.
Credit Risk. This is the risk that the issuer, the guarantor, or the insurer of a fixed income security, the counterparty to an investment or derivatives contract, or obligor of an obligation underlying an asset-backed security may be unable or unwilling to make timely principal and interest payments or to otherwise honor its obligations. Litigation, legislation or other political events, business or economic conditions, or the bankruptcy of the issuer could have a significant effect on an issuer’s or obligor’s ability to make payments of principal and/or interest. The lower the credit quality of a bond, the more sensitive it is to credit risk, and the credit quality of an investment can deteriorate rapidly.
Currency Risk. Currency risk is the risk that fluctuations in exchange rates will adversely affect the market value of a Portfolio’s investments, including the risk that the currencies in which the Portfolio’s investments are traded or in which the Portfolio receives income will decline in value relative to the US dollar. The overall impact on a Portfolio’s holdings can be significant, and long-lasting, depending on the currencies represented in the portfolio and how each foreign currency appreciates or depreciates in relation to the US dollar and whether currency positions are hedged. Further, since exchange rate movements are volatile, a Portfolio’s attempt at hedging could be unsuccessful, and it is not possible to effectively hedge the currency risks of many emerging market countries.

Derivatives Risk. A derivative is a financial contract, the value of which depends upon, or is derived from, the value of one or more underlying investments, such as an asset, reference rate, or index. The use of derivatives is a highly specialized activity that involves a variety of risks in addition to and greater than those associated with investing directly in securities, including the risk that: the party on the other side of a derivative transaction will be unable to honor its financial obligation; leverage created by investing in derivatives may result in losses to the Portfolio; derivatives may be difficult or impossible for the Portfolio to buy or sell at an opportune time or price, and may be difficult to terminate or otherwise offset; derivatives used for hedging may reduce or magnify losses but also may reduce or eliminate gains; the price of derivatives may be more volatile than the prices of traditional equity and debt securities; and changes in a derivative’s value may not correlate perfectly with the assets, rates, indices or instruments it is designed to hedge or closely track. The Portfolio is subject to a derivatives risk management program, which may limit the ability of the Portfolio to invest in derivatives.
Dollar Roll Transactions Risk: Dollar rolls involve the sale by a Portfolio of a security for delivery in the current month with a promise to repurchase from the buyer a substantially similar—but not necessarily the same—security at a set price and date in the future. In a dollar roll, the Portfolio takes the risk that: (i) the market price of the mortgage-backed securities will drop below their future repurchase price; (ii) the securities that it repurchases at a later date will have less favorable market characteristics; (iii) the other party to the agreement will not be able to perform; (iv) the roll adds leverage to the Portfolio; and (v) the roll increases the Portfolio’s sensitivity to interest rate changes. In addition, investments in dollar rolls may increase the portfolio turnover rate of the Portfolio.
Economic and Market Events Risk. Economic and market events risk is the risk that one or more markets in which the Portfolio invests will decline in value, including the possibility that the markets will decline sharply and unpredictably. While a Portfolio’s Manager or Subadviser(s) may make efforts to control the risks associated with market changes, and may attempt to identify changes as they occur, market environment changes can be sudden and extreme. Significant shocks to or disruptions of the financial markets or the economy, including those relating to general economic, political, or financial market conditions; significant or unexpected failures, near-failures or credit downgrades of key institutions; investor sentiment and market perceptions; unexpected changes in the prices of key commodities; government actions; geopolitical events or changes; and factors related to a specific issuer, geography, industry or sector, could adversely affect the liquidity and volatility of securities held by the Portfolio. In periods of market volatility and/or declines, the Portfolio may experience high levels of shareholder redemptions, and may have to sell securities at times when it would otherwise not do so, and at unfavorable prices.
Equity and Equity-Related Securities Risk. From time to time, the Portfolio may purchase or hold equity or equity-related securities incidental to the purchase or ownership of fixed income instruments or in connection with a reorganization of a borrower. These include common stock, preferred stock or securities that may be converted into or exchanged for common stock—known as convertible securities—like rights and warrants. The value of a particular equity or equity-related security held by a Portfolio could fluctuate, perhaps greatly, in response to a number of factors, such as changes in the issuer’s financial condition, changes in interest rates, or heightened levels of inflation. Such events may result in losses to the Portfolio. In addition, due to decreases in liquidity, the Portfolio may be unable to sell its securities holdings within a reasonable time at the price it values the security or at any price.
Expense Risk. The actual cost of investing in the Portfolio may be higher than the expenses shown in the Annual Portfolio Operating Expenses table above for a variety of reasons, including, for example, if the Portfolio’s average net assets decrease.
Interest Rate Risk. The value of your investment may go down when interest rates rise. A rise in interest rates tends to have a greater impact on the prices of longer term or duration securities. When interest rates fall, the issuers of debt obligations may prepay principal more quickly than expected, and the Portfolio may be required to reinvest the proceeds at a lower interest rate. This is referred to as prepayment risk. When interest rates rise, debt obligations may be repaid more slowly than expected, and the value of the Portfolio's holdings may fall sharply. This is referred to as extension risk. The Portfolio currently faces a heightened level of interest rate risk because of recent increases in interest rates in the US and globally. In recent years, the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) began implementing increases to the federal funds interest rate and there may be further rate increases. As interest rates rise, the value of fixed income investments typically decreases and there is risk that rates across the financial system also may rise. To the extent rates increase substantially and/or rapidly, a Portfolio with significant investment in fixed income investments may be subject to significant losses. Interest rates may continue to increase, possibly suddenly and significantly, with unpredictable effects on the markets and the Portfolio’s investments. The Portfolio may lose money if short-term or long-term interest rates rise sharply or in a manner not anticipated by the subadviser.
Leverage Risk. Borrowings, certain derivatives and other trading strategies can create leverage (i.e., a Portfolio’s investment exposures exceed its net asset value), which may amplify the Portfolio’s gains and losses and cause the Portfolio to be more volatile and riskier than if it had not been leveraged.

Liquidity and Valuation Risk. The Portfolio may hold one or more securities for which there are no or few buyers and sellers or the securities are subject to limitations on transfer. The Portfolio may be unable to sell those portfolio holdings at the desired time or price, and may have difficulty determining the value of such securities for the purpose of determining the Portfolio’s net asset value. In such cases, investments owned by the Portfolio may be valued at fair value pursuant to policies and procedures adopted and implemented by the Manager. No assurance can be given that the fair value prices accurately reflect the value of the security. The Portfolio is subject to a liquidity risk management program, which limits the ability of the Portfolio to invest in illiquid investments.
Market and Management Risk. Markets in which the Portfolio invests may experience volatility and go down in value, and possibly sharply and unpredictably in short periods of time. Investment techniques, risk analyses, and investment strategies, which may include quantitative models or methods, used by a subadviser in making investment decisions for the Portfolio are subject to human error and may not produce the intended or desired results. The value of the Portfolio’s investments may be negatively affected by the occurrence of domestic or global events, including war, terrorism, environmental disasters, natural disasters, sanctions, cybersecurity events, supply chain disruptions, political or civil instability, and public health emergencies, among others. Such events may reduce consumer demand or economic output, result in market closures, travel restrictions or quarantines, and significantly adversely impact the economy. There is no guarantee that the investment objective of the Portfolio will be achieved.
Portfolio Turnover Risk. A subadviser may engage in active trading on behalf of the Portfolio—that is, frequent trading of the Portfolio’s securities—in order to take advantage of new investment opportunities or yield differentials. The Portfolio's turnover rate may be higher than that of other mutual funds. Portfolio turnover generally involves some expense to the Portfolio, including brokerage commissions or dealer mark-ups and other transaction costs on the sale of securities and reinvestment in other securities.
Prepayment or Call Risk. Prepayment or call risk is the risk that issuers will prepay fixed-rate obligations held by the Portfolio when interest rates fall, forcing a Portfolio to reinvest in obligations with lower interest rates than the original obligations. Mortgage-related securities and asset-backed securities are particularly subject to prepayment risk.
Regulatory Risk. The Portfolio is subject to a variety of laws and regulations which govern its operations. The Portfolio is subject to regulation by the Securities and Exchange Commission (the SEC), and depending on the Portfolio, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (the CFTC). Similarly, the businesses and other issuers of the securities and other instruments in which the Portfolio invests are also subject to considerable regulation. Changes in laws and regulations may materially impact the Portfolio, a security, business, sector, or market.
Reverse Repurchase Agreement Risk: Reverse repurchase agreements involve the sale of securities with an agreement to repurchase the securities at an agreed-upon price, date and interest payment and have the characteristics of borrowing. The use of reverse repurchase agreements may exaggerate any increase or decrease in the value of a Portfolio’s assets. The use of reverse repurchase agreements is a form of leverage because the proceeds derived from reverse repurchase agreements may be invested in additional securities.
Short Sale Risk. A short sale involves the risk that the price of a borrowed security or derivative will increase during the time the Portfolio has borrowed the security or derivative and the Portfolio will incur a loss equal to the increase in price from the time that the short sale was entered into plus any premiums and interest paid to the third party. Short sales may result in losses that are greater than the cost of the investment. In addition, the third party to the short sale may fail to honor its contract terms, causing a loss to the Portfolio.
Past Performance. The bar chart and table provide some indication of the risks of investing in the Portfolio by showing changes in the Portfolio's performance from year to year and by showing how the Portfolio's average annual returns for 1, 5, and 10 years compare with those of a broad-based securities market index that reflects the performance of the overall market applicable to the Portfolio. Past performance does not mean that the Portfolio will achieve similar results in the future.
The annual returns and average annual returns shown in the chart and table are after deduction of expenses and do not include Contract charges. If Contract charges were included, the returns shown would have been lower than those shown. Consult your Contract prospectus for information about Contract charges.
Annual return information in the bar chart is provided only for Class I shares. Because all of the Portfolio’s shares are invested in the same portfolio of securities, annual returns for Class III shares would be lower because Class III shares do not have the same expenses as Class I shares.

Best Quarter:
Worst Quarter:
7.19%
4th
Quarter
2023
-6.61%
2nd
Quarter
2022
Average Annual Total Returns (For the periods ended December 31, 2023)
 
One Year
Five Years
Ten Years
Since
Inception
Inception
Date
PSF PGIM Total Return Bond Portfolio Class I Shares
7.27%
1.75%
2.77%
-
 
PSF PGIM Total Return Bond Portfolio Class III Shares
7.08%
N/A
N/A
-2.81%
4-26-2021
Index
Broad-Based Securities Market Index: Bloomberg US Aggregate Bond Index (reflects no
deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)
5.53%
1.10%
1.81%
-2.76%*
 
* Since Inception returns for the Index are measured from the month-end closest to the inception date.
MANAGEMENT OF THE PORTFOLIO
Investment Manager
Subadviser
Portfolio Managers
Title
Service Date
PGIM Investments LLC
PGIM Fixed Income*; PGIM Limited
Robert Tipp, CFA
Managing Director,
Chief Investment
Strategist, and Head of
Global Bonds
September 2002
 
 
Richard Piccirillo
Managing Director and
Senior Portfolio
Manager
February 2013
 
 
Gregory Peters
Managing Director and
Co-Chief Investment
Officer
April 2014
 
 
Matthew Angelucci, CFA
Principal and Co-Senior
Portfolio Manager
September 2023
 
 
Tyler Thorn
Vice President and
Portfolio Manager
September 2023
*PGIM Fixed Income is a business unit of PGIM, Inc.
TAX INFORMATION
Contract owners should consult the prospectus of the appropriate separate account or description of the plan for a discussion and information on the tax consequences of the Contract, policy or plan. In addition, Contract owners may wish to consult with their own tax advisors as to the tax consequences of investments in the Contracts and the Portfolio, including the application of US federal, state, local and non-US taxes. The Portfolio currently intends to be treated as a partnership for US federal income tax purposes. As a result, the Portfolio's income, gains, losses, deductions, and credits are passed through pro rata directly to the Participating Insurance Companies and retain the same character for US federal income tax purposes.
FINANCIAL INTERMEDIARY COMPENSATION
If you purchase your Contract through a broker-dealer or other financial intermediary (such as a bank), the Participating Insurance Company, the Portfolio, or their related companies may pay the intermediary for the sale of the Contract, the selection of the Portfolio, and related services. These payments may create a conflict of interest by influencing the broker-dealer or other intermediary and your salesperson to recommend the Contract over another investment or insurance product, or to recommend the Portfolio over another investment option under the Contract. Ask your salesperson or visit your financial intermediary's website for more information.

Notes

 
 
By Mail:
The Prudential Series Fund, 655 Broad Street, Newark, NJ 07102
By Telephone:
1-800-346-3778
On the Internet:
www.prudential.com/variableinsuranceportfolios
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