Brokerages Set Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) Price Target at $109.31

Shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) have received an average recommendation of “Reduce” from the seventeen analysts that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, eleven have issued a hold recommendation and one has assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month target price among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $109.3077.

A number of research firms recently commented on PRU. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on Prudential Financial from $113.00 to $123.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 11th. Barclays lifted their target price on Prudential Financial from $90.00 to $92.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Prudential Financial from $92.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Monday, August 24th. Wall Street Zen raised Prudential Financial from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday. Finally, Mizuho boosted their price objective on shares of Prudential Financial from $101.00 to $109.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, July 9th.

Insider Activity at Prudential Financial

In other Prudential Financial news, major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential sold 214,746 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction 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 directly owned 7,973,657 shares in the company, valued at $197,348,010.75. This represents a 2.62% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Ann M. Kappler sold 7,652 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $125.01, for a total value of $956,576.52. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 14,407 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,801,019.07. This represents a 34.69% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Corporate insiders own 0.05% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Prudential Financial

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Jessup Wealth Management Inc purchased a new stake in Prudential Financial during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Archer Investment Corp acquired a new position in shares of Prudential Financial in the second quarter worth $26,000. Garton & Associates Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Prudential Financial during the fourth quarter worth $26,000. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. raised its stake in shares of Prudential Financial by 93.1% in the first quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 278 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 134 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Coston McIsaac & Partners raised its stake in shares of Prudential Financial by 93.4% in the fourth quarter. Coston McIsaac & Partners now owns 265 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 128 shares in the last quarter. 56.83% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Prudential Financial Price Performance

PRU stock opened at $116.99 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 0.16 and a quick ratio of 0.16. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $118.30 and a 200-day simple moving average of $106.48. The firm has a market capitalization of $40.36 billion, a PE ratio of 10.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 0.83. Prudential Financial has a 1 year low of $91.89 and a 1 year high of $127.72.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 4th. The financial services provider reported $4.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.52 by $0.56. Prudential Financial had a net margin of 6.51% and a return on equity of 16.68%. The firm had revenue of $14.15 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.36 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $3.58 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that Prudential Financial will post 14.51 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Prudential Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 25th. Prudential Financial’s payout ratio is 50.72%.

Prudential Financial Company Profile

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.