ADVANCED SERIES TRUST

AST AQR Emerging Markets Equity Portfolio

SUMMARY PROSPECTUS • April 27, 2020

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 April 27, 2020, as supplemented and amended from time to time, and the Portfolio’s most recent shareholder report, dated December 31, 2019 are all hereby incorporated by reference into (legally made a part of) this Summary Prospectus.

IMPORTANT NOTE:

The Board of Trustees of the Trust recently approved the reorganization of the Portfolio into the AST Emerging Markets Equity Portfolio. The completion of the reorganization transaction is subject to approval by the shareholders of the Portfolio and the satisfaction of certain customary closing conditions. It is anticipated that a proxy statement/prospectus relating to this transaction will be mailed to Portfolio shareholders on or about June 2020 and that a special meeting of Portfolio shareholders will be held on or about July 2020. Assuming receipt of the required shareholder approval and satisfaction of the relevant closing conditions for the reorganization transaction, it is expected that the reorganization transaction would be completed on or about third quarter of 2020. If approved by shareholders, shareholders of the Portfolio will become shareholders of the AST Emerging Markets Equity Portfolio.

INVESTMENT OBJECTIVE

The investment objective of the Portfolio is to seek long-term capital appreciation.

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	0.93%
+ Distribution and/or Service Fees (12b-1 Fees)	0.25%
+ Other Expenses	0.16%
= Total Annual Portfolio Operating Expenses	1.34%
- Fee Waiver and/or Expense Reimbursement	(0.01)%
= Total Annual Portfolio Operating Expenses After Fee Waiver and/or Expense Reimbursement⁽¹⁾	1.33%

*Differences in the Total Annual Portfolio Operating Expenses shown in the table above and in the Portfolio’s Financial Highlights are attributable to changes in management fees, fee waivers and/or expense limitations implemented after the end of the most recent fiscal year.

⁽¹⁾The Manager has contractually agreed to waive a portion of its investment management fee and/or reimburse certain expenses of the Portfolio so that the Portfolio's investment management fee plus other expenses (exclusive of certain expenses as described more fully in the Trust’s Statement of Additional Information) do not exceed 1.330% of the Portfolio's average daily net assets through June 30, 2021. Expenses waived/reimbursed by the Manager may be recouped by the Manager within the same fiscal year during which such waiver/reimbursement is made if such recoupment can be realized without exceeding the expense limit in effect at the time of the recoupment for that fiscal year. This arrangement may not be terminated or modified prior to June 30, 2021 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 AQR Emerging Markets Equity	$135	$424	$733	$1,612

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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 127% of the average value of its portfolio.

INVESTMENTS, RISKS AND PERFORMANCE

Principal Investment Strategies. The Portfolio seeks to achieve its investment objective by both overweighting and underweighting securities, industries, countries, and currencies relative to the MSCI Emerging Markets Index, using proprietary quantitative return forecasting models and systematic risk-control methods developed by AQR Capital Management, LLC (AQR), the subadviser to the Portfolio. The Portfolio invests in companies within a range of market capitalizations, possibly including small-cap companies.

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 equity securities, including common stocks, preferred stocks, securities convertible into stocks, real estate investment trusts or securities with similar characteristics and depositary receipts for those securities, of issuers: (i) located in emerging market countries or (ii) included as emerging market issuers in one or more broad-based market indices.

AQR employs a disciplined approach emphasizing both top-down country/currency allocation and bottom-up security selection decisions that include selection of individual stocks within industries as well as explicit industry/sector selection. This approach is carried out through a systematic and quantitative investment process, and utilizes a set of value, momentum, and other economic factors to generate an investment portfolio based on AQR's global asset allocation models and stock selection models. AQR intends to use some or all of the following instruments, at all times, in order to implement its investment strategy: depositary receipts, options, warrants, index futures (including country index futures), equity swaps, index swaps, foreign currency forwards, and other types of derivative instruments. AQR's use of derivative instruments in the Portfolio is intended to result in a more efficient means of gaining market exposure, expressing investment views, and managing risk exposures. AQR will not use derivative instruments to leverage the Portfolio's net exposure to the MSCI Emerging Markets Index.

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 objective, the Portfolio cannot guarantee success. The order of the below risk factors does not indicate the significance of any particular risk factor.

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 asset flows could remove all or substantially all of the assets of 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.

Economic and Market Events Risk. Events in the US and global financial markets, including actions taken by the US Federal Reserve or foreign central banks to stimulate or stabilize economic growth, may at times result in periods of unusually high volatility in a market or a segment of a market, which could negatively impact performance. Reduced liquidity in credit and fixed income markets could adversely affect issuers worldwide.

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.

Emerging Markets Risk. The risks of non-US investments are greater for investments in or exposed to emerging markets. Emerging market countries typically have economic, political and social systems that are less developed, and can be expected to be less stable, than those of more developed countries. For example, the economies of such countries can be subject to currency devaluations and rapid and unpredictable (and in some cases, extremely high) rates of inflation or deflation. Low trading volumes may result in a lack of liquidity, price volatility and valuation difficulties. Emerging market countries may have policies that restrict investments by foreign investors, or that prevent foreign investors from withdrawing their money at will, which may make it difficult for a Portfolio to invest in such countries or increase the administrative costs of such investments. Countries with emerging markets can be found in regions such as Asia, Latin America, Eastern Europe and Africa. A Portfolio may invest in some emerging markets through trading structures or protocols that subject it to risks such as those associated with decreased liquidity, custody of assets, different settlement and clearance procedures and asserting legal title under a developing legal and regulatory regime to a greater degree than in developed markets or even in other emerging markets.

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.

Foreign Investment Risk. Investments in foreign securities generally involve more risk than investments 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; 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 interruptions in the global supply chain, natural disasters and outbreaks of infectious diseases.

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 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. 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 may not produce the intended or desired results. The value of the Portfolio’s investments may be negatively affected by the occurrence of global events such as war, terrorism, environmental disasters, natural disasters or events, country instability, and infectious disease epidemics. 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.

Quantitative Model Risk. The Portfolio and certain Underlying Portfolios, if applicable, may use quantitative models as part of its investment process. Securities or other investments selected using quantitative methods may perform differently from the market as a whole or from their expected performance for many reasons, including factors used in building the quantitative analytical framework, the weights placed on each factor, and changing sources of market returns. There can be no assurance that these methodologies will produce the desired results or enable the Portfolio to achieve its objective.

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 depending on the Portfolio, 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.

Selection Risk. The subadviser will actively manage the Portfolio by applying investment techniques and risk analyses in making investment decisions. There can be no guarantee that these investment decisions will produce the desired results and the Portfolio may underperform the market, the relevant indices, or other funds with similar investment objectives and strategies as a result of such investment decisions.

Small Sized Company Risk. Securities of small sized companies tend to be less liquid than those of larger, more established companies, which can have an adverse effect on the price of these securities and on the Portfolio’s ability to sell these securities. The market price of such investments also may rise more in response to buying demand and fall more in response to selling pressure and be more volatile than investments in larger companies.

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 year, 5 years and since inception of the Portfolio 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:
12.74%	1^st Quarter 2017	-16.91%	3^rd Quarter 2015

Average Annual Total Returns (For the periods ended December 31, 2019)
	1 Year	5 Years	Since Inception (02/25/13)
Portfolio	17.81%	4.29%	3.00%

Index
MSCI Emerging Markets Index (GD) (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)	18.90%	6.01%	3.71%*

*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	AQR Capital Management, LLC	Clifford S. Asness, PhD, MBA	Managing and Founding Principal	February 2013
		John M. Liew, PhD, MBA	Founding Principal	February 2013
		Michael Katz, PhD, AM	Principal	May 2016
		Lars N. Nielsen, MSc	Principal	January 2020
		Ronen Israel, MA	Principal	January 2020
		Andrea Frazzini, PhD, MS	Principal	January 2020

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.

Notes


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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