Prudential Financial, Inc. (PRU) – What Are Analysts Saying About This Stock?

Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) has been assigned a consensus rating of “Reduce” from the sixteen brokerages that are covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. The average 1 year price target among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $107.15.

Several research firms have recently commented on PRU. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of Prudential Financial from $131.00 to $127.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 15th. Piper Sandler reduced their price objective on shares of Prudential Financial from $128.00 to $120.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, October 12th. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on Prudential Financial from $105.00 to $100.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday. Barclays cut their target price on Prudential Financial from $96.00 to $94.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded Prudential Financial from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, September 28th.

Insider Transactions at Prudential Financial

In related news, major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential sold 214,746 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.75, for a total value of $5,314,963.50. Following the sale, the insider owned 7,973,657 shares in the company, valued at $197,348,010.75. This represents a 2.62% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Ann Kappler sold 7,652 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $125.01, for a total value of $956,576.52. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 14,407 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,801,019.07. The trade was a 34.69% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Company insiders own 0.05% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Prudential Financial in the second quarter valued at about $3,507,481,000. State Street Corp lifted its stake in Prudential Financial by 1.2% in the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 17,164,760 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,852,593,000 after buying an additional 209,179 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in Prudential Financial by 4.6% in the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,758,545 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $367,089,000 after buying an additional 166,641 shares in the last quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership raised its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 95.3% in the first quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 2,556,748 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $249,769,000 after acquiring an additional 1,247,371 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new position in shares of Prudential Financial in the second quarter worth $209,055,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 56.83% of the company’s stock.

Prudential Financial Stock Down 0.4%

PRU opened at $114.80 on Friday. Prudential Financial has a 52 week low of $91.89 and a 52 week high of $127.72. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $117.98 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $111.25. The company has a quick ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62. The company has a market cap of $39.61 billion, a PE ratio of 10.40, a P/E/G ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 0.85.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The financial services provider reported $4.08 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.52 by $0.56. Prudential Financial had a return on equity of 16.68% and a net margin of 6.51%. The business had revenue of $14.15 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.36 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $3.58 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Prudential Financial will post 14.37 EPS for the current year.

Prudential Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 25th were issued a dividend of $1.40 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, August 25th. This represents a $5.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.9%. Prudential Financial’s payout ratio is currently 50.72%.

Key Stories Impacting Prudential Financial

Here are the key news stories impacting Prudential Financial this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Prudential agreed to sell its Brazil and Mexico insurance operations to CNP Assurances for approximately $4.025 billion in cash. The transaction could provide substantial capital, simplify Prudential’s international footprint and sharpen its focus on core businesses. The deal is subject to closing adjustments and customary conditions. Prudential Financial Agrees to Sell Operations in Brazil and Mexico
• Positive Sentiment: Prudential partnered with SoFi to expand access to life insurance. The relationship may broaden Prudential’s digital distribution and customer reach, although the financial contribution was not disclosed. SoFi ties up with Prudential Financial for expanded access to life insurance
• Neutral Sentiment: Prudential Wealth Advisors plans to increase recruiting through a centralized operating model. The initiative could support longer-term growth, but its near-term effect on earnings is uncertain. Prudential Wealth Advisors set to ramp up recruiting
• Neutral Sentiment: Prudential Life Insurance Ghana launched PRUConnect, a customer-facing digital insurance platform. The product supports engagement and service improvements, but appears unlikely to materially affect consolidated results immediately. Prudential Life Insurance Ghana introduces PRUConnect
• Negative Sentiment: Analysts lowered their expectations for PRU. TD Cowen cut its price target from $114 to $112 and maintained a “hold” rating. Barclays and Morgan Stanley also reduced their price targets, reinforcing concerns about limited near-term upside. Barclays lowers expectations for Prudential Financial Morgan Stanley cuts Prudential Financial price target

About Prudential Financial

Prudential Financial, Inc (NYSE: PRU) is a global financial services company that provides insurance, retirement, investment management and related financial products. Founded in Newark, New Jersey, in 1875, the company serves individuals, businesses and institutional investors through a range of businesses and distribution channels.

In the United States, Prudential offers life insurance, annuities, retirement plans and employee benefits, including group life, disability and dental insurance.