Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) Price Target Raised to $128.00

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) had its price target raised by Piper Sandler from $110.00 to $128.00 in a report published on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a neutral rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

Several other research firms have also recently weighed in on PRU. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on Prudential Financial from $113.00 to $123.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Tuesday. Barclays upped their price objective on Prudential Financial from $90.00 to $92.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 7th. Argus downgraded Prudential Financial from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 9th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Prudential Financial from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, August 8th. Finally, TD Cowen upped their price target on shares of Prudential Financial from $102.00 to $114.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and five have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $107.62.

Prudential Financial Stock Up 1.7%

PRU opened at $124.81 on Tuesday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $114.54 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $105.09. Prudential Financial has a 52 week low of $91.89 and a 52 week high of $127.72. The company has a market capitalization of $43.06 billion, a PE ratio of 11.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.33 and a beta of 0.84. The company has a quick ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The financial services provider reported $4.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.52 by $0.56. The firm had revenue of $14.15 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.36 billion. Prudential Financial had a return on equity of 16.68% and a net margin of 6.51%.During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $3.58 earnings per share. Analysts forecast that Prudential Financial will post 14.17 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Prudential Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 25th will be paid a $1.40 dividend. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 25th. Prudential Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 50.72%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Prudential Financial

In other news, major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential sold 214,746 shares of the business’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 transaction of $5,314,963.50. Following the transaction, the insider owned 7,973,657 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $197,348,010.75. The trade was a 2.62% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.05% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Jessup Wealth Management Inc bought a new position in Prudential Financial during the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Garton & Associates Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Prudential Financial during the 4th quarter worth $26,000. Salomon & Ludwin LLC grew its position in shares of Prudential Financial by 98.3% during the 4th quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 230 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 114 shares in the last quarter. Basepoint Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of Prudential Financial in the fourth quarter valued at about $30,000. Finally, Coston McIsaac & Partners lifted its stake in Prudential Financial by 93.4% in the fourth quarter. Coston McIsaac & Partners now owns 265 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 128 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 56.83% of the company’s stock.

About Prudential Financial

Prudential Financial, Inc, headquartered in Newark, New Jersey, is a diversified financial services company with roots dating to 1875. The firm provides a range of insurance, retirement and investment products aimed at helping individual and institutional clients manage risk, accumulate and protect wealth, and plan for retirement. Prudential’s long history in life insurance and related financial services has positioned it as a major participant in the U.S. insurance market and a provider of services to a broad client base.

Prudential’s core business activities include individual life insurance, annuities, retirement solutions and group insurance products for employers.