Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) Price Target Raised to $117.00

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) had its target price increased by Morgan Stanley from $109.00 to $117.00 in a research note released on Monday, Benzinga reports. They currently have an equal weight rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports on PRU. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Prudential Financial from $108.00 to $112.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a report on Monday, February 12th. TheStreet raised Prudential Financial from a c+ rating to an a- rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 6th. Piper Sandler raised their price objective on Prudential Financial from $114.00 to $125.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a report on Friday, April 5th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Prudential Financial from $100.00 to $106.00 and gave the stock an underweight rating in a report on Thursday, April 11th. Finally, Evercore ISI raised their price target on shares of Prudential Financial from $104.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an underperform rating in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eleven have given a hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Prudential Financial has an average rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $111.33.

Prudential Financial Stock Up 1.3 %

Shares of PRU opened at $108.70 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 0.13, a quick ratio of 0.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. The firm has a market cap of $39.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.25, a PEG ratio of 0.73 and a beta of 1.37. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $111.20 and its two-hundred day moving average is $102.94. Prudential Financial has a 12 month low of $77.22 and a 12 month high of $118.69.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 6th. The financial services provider reported $2.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.67 by ($0.09). The company had revenue of $13.02 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $12.99 billion. Prudential Financial had a net margin of 4.89% and a return on equity of 14.52%. Prudential Financial’s revenue was up 6.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.42 EPS. Analysts predict that Prudential Financial will post 13.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Prudential Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 14th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 20th were given a dividend of $1.30 per share. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.78%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 16th. This is a positive change from Prudential Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.25. Prudential Financial’s payout ratio is presently 77.73%.

Insider Activity at Prudential Financial

In other Prudential Financial news, SVP Timothy L. Schmidt sold 7,912 shares of Prudential Financial stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $108.13, for a total value of $855,524.56. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 14,754 shares in the company, valued at $1,595,350.02. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, SVP Robert Axel sold 6,436 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $111.86, for a total value of $719,930.96. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 7,901 shares in the company, valued at approximately $883,805.86. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Timothy L. Schmidt sold 7,912 shares of Prudential Financial stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $108.13, for a total transaction of $855,524.56. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 14,754 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,595,350.02. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 29,255 shares of company stock worth $3,215,664. Insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Fairfield Bush & CO. purchased a new position in Prudential Financial during the 1st quarter valued at about $36,000. Blair William & Co. IL boosted its stake in shares of Prudential Financial by 11.3% in the first quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 50,600 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $5,979,000 after purchasing an additional 5,126 shares during the period. Sei Investments Co. increased its stake in Prudential Financial by 6.4% during the 1st quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 90,235 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $10,698,000 after buying an additional 5,452 shares during the period. Candriam Luxembourg S.C.A. lifted its holdings in Prudential Financial by 0.7% during the 1st quarter. Candriam Luxembourg S.C.A. now owns 47,576 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $5,621,000 after buying an additional 326 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Baird Financial Group Inc. boosted its position in Prudential Financial by 36.4% in the 1st quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 135,716 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $16,037,000 after buying an additional 36,184 shares during the period. 56.83% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.