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ADVANCED SERIES TRUST
AST International Growth Portfolio
SUMMARY PROSPECTUS • May 1, 2017
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, 2017, as supplemented and amended from time to time, and the Portfolio’s most recent shareholder report, dated December 31, 2016 are all hereby incorporated by reference into (legally made a part of) this Summary Prospectus.
INVESTMENT OBJECTIVE
The investment objective of the Portfolio is to seek long-term growth 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)  
Management Fees 0.81%
+ Distribution and/or Service Fees (12b-1 Fees) 0.25%
+ Other Expenses 0.04%
= Total Annual Portfolio Operating Expenses 1.10%
- Fee Waiver and/or Expense Reimbursement -0.01%
= Total Annual Portfolio Operating Expenses After Fee Waiver and/or Expense Reimbursement(1) 1.09%
(1)The Manager has contractually agreed to waive 0.011% of its investment management fee through June 30, 2018. This arrangement may not be terminated or modified without the prior approval of the Trust’s Board of Trustees.
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
AST International Growth $111 $349 $605 $1,339
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 most recent fiscal year ended December 31, the Portfolio's turnover rate was 61% 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 securities of issuers that are economically tied to countries other than the United States. Equity and equity-related securities include, but are not limited to, common stocks, securities convertible or exchangeable for common stock or the cash value of common stock, preferred stocks, warrants and rights that can be exercised to obtain stock, investments in various types of business ventures including partnerships and business development companies, investments in other mutual funds, exchange-traded funds (ETFs), securities of real estate investment trusts (REITs) and income and royalty trusts, structured securities including participation notes (P-Notes), structured notes (S-Notes) and low exercise price warrants (LEPWs) or other similar securities and American Depositary
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Receipts (ADRs) and other similar receipts or shares, in both listed and unlisted form. The Portfolio has the flexibility to invest on a worldwide basis in companies and organizations of any size, regardless of country of organization or place of principal business activity. The Portfolio normally invests primarily in securities of issuers from at least five different countries, which may include countries with emerging markets, excluding the United States. Although the Portfolio intends to invest at least 80% of its assets in the securities of issuers located outside the United States, it may at times invest in US issuers and it may at times invest all of its assets in fewer than five countries or even a single country.
Principal Risks of Investing in the Portfolio. The risks summarized below are the principal risks of investing in the Portfolio. 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 objectives, the Portfolio cannot guarantee success.
Asset Transfer Program Risk. Predetermined, nondiscretionary mathematical formulas used by the Participating Insurance Companies to manage the guarantees offered in connection with certain benefit programs under the Contracts may result in systematic transfers of assets among the investment options under the Contracts, including the Portfolio. These formulas may result in large-scale asset flows into and out of the Portfolio, which could adversely affect the Portfolio, including its risk profile, expenses and performance. For example, the asset flows may adversely affect performance by requiring the Portfolio to purchase or sell securities at inopportune times, by otherwise limiting the subadviser’s ability to fully implement the Portfolio’s investment strategies, or by requiring the Portfolio to hold a larger portion of its assets in highly liquid securities than it otherwise would hold. The asset flows may also result in high turnover, low asset levels and high operating expense ratios for the Portfolio. The efficient operation of the asset flows depends on active and liquid markets. If market liquidity is strained, the asset flows may not operate as intended which in turn could adversely affect performance.
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; and the price of commodity-linked derivatives may be more volatile than the prices of traditional equity and debt securities.
In 2015, the SEC proposed a new rule related to the use of derivatives by registered investment companies, which, if adopted by the SEC as proposed, may limit the Portfolio’s ability to engage in transactions that involve potential future payment obligations (including derivatives such as forwards, futures, swaps and written options) and may limit the ability of the Portfolio to invest in accordance with its stated investment strategy.
Equity Securities Risk. The value of a particular stock or equity-related security held by the Portfolio could fluctuate, perhaps greatly, in response to a number of factors, such as changes in the issuer’s financial condition or the value of the equity markets or a sector of those markets. Such events may result in losses to the Portfolio.
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.
Focus Risk. The Portfolio focuses or may focus its investments in particular countries, regions, industries, sectors, or types of investments and may accumulate large positions in such areas. As a result, the Portfolio’s performance may be more sensitive to a small group of related holdings and adverse developments in such areas than a portfolio more broadly invested.
Foreign Investment Risk. Investments in foreign securities generally involve more risk than investing in securities of US issuers, including: 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 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; and foreign holdings may be subject to special taxation and limitations on repatriating investment proceeds.
Investment Style Risk. Securities of a particular investment style, such as growth or value, tend to perform differently (i.e., better or worse than other segments of, or the overall, stock market) depending on market and economic conditions. At times when the investment style is out of favor, the Portfolio may underperform other funds that use different investment styles.
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 guidelines established by the Trust’s Board of Trustees. No assurance can be given that the fair value prices accurately reflect the value of security.
Market and Management Risk. Markets in which the Portfolio invests may experience volatility and go down in value, and possibly sharply and unpredictably. The investment techniques, risk analysis and investment strategies used by a subadviser in making investment decisions for the Portfolio may not produce the intended or desired results. There is no guarantee that the investment objective of the Portfolio will be achieved.
Recent Events Risk. Events in the financial markets have caused, and may continue to cause, increased volatility and a significant decline in the value and liquidity of many securities. As a result, identifying investment risks and opportunities may be especially difficult. There is no assurance that steps taken by governments, and their agencies and instrumentalities, to support financial markets will continue, and the impact of regulatory changes on the markets may not be known for some time.
Redemption Risk. A Portfolio that serves as an underlying fund for a fund of funds is subject to certain risks. When a fund of funds reallocates or rebalances its investments, an underlying fund may experience relatively large redemptions or investments. These transactions may cause the Portfolio serving as the underlying fund to sell portfolio securities to meet such redemptions, or to invest cash from such investments, at times that it would not otherwise do so, and may as a result increase transaction costs or adversely affect Portfolio performance.
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 SEC and/or 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. A change in laws and regulations may materially impact the Portfolio, a security, business, sector or market.
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 measure of market performance. 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.
  
    
Best Quarter: Worst Quarter:
23.46% 2nd Quarter 2009 -25.19% 3rd Quarter 2008
  
 
 
Average Annual Total Returns (For the periods ended December 31, 2016)      
  1 Year 5 Years 10 Years
Portfolio -3.78% 6.09% 0.72%
    
Index      
MSCI Europe, Australasia and the Far East (EAFE) Index (GD) (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes) 1.51% 7.02% 1.22%
MANAGEMENT OF THE PORTFOLIO
Investment Managers Subadvisers Portfolio Managers Title Service Date
PGIM Investments LLC William Blair Investment Management, LLC Simon Fennell Partner and Portfolio Manager January 2014
AST Investment Services, Inc.   Kenneth J. McAtamney Partner and Portfolio Manager January 2014
  Neuberger Berman Investment Advisers LLC Benjamin Segal, CFA Managing Director and Portfolio Manager June 2013
Investment Managers Subadvisers Portfolio Managers Title Service Date
    Elias Cohen, CFA Senior Vice President and Associate Portfolio Manager January 2017
  Jennison Associates LLC Mark Baribeau, CFA Managing Director & Head of Global Equity May 2012
    Thomas Davis Managing Director May 2012
TAX INFORMATION
Contract owners should consult their Contract prospectus for information on the federal tax consequences to them. 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 state and local taxes. The Portfolio currently intends to be treated as a partnership for 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 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.
   
By Mail: Advanced Series Trust, 655 Broad Street, Newark, NJ 07102
By Telephone: 1-800-346-3778
On the Internet: www.prudential.com/variableinsuranceportfolios
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