Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) Price Target Raised to $118.00

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) had its target price lifted by Wells Fargo & Company from $113.00 to $118.00 in a research note released on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. They currently have an equal weight rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

PRU has been the topic of several other research reports. BMO Capital Markets started coverage on Prudential Financial in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. They issued an “underperform” rating and a $101.00 price target on the stock. Evercore ISI upgraded Prudential Financial from an “underperform” rating to an “inline” rating and increased their target price for the company from $117.00 to $140.00 in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. Piper Sandler dropped their price target on shares of Prudential Financial from $127.00 to $124.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Prudential Financial from $128.00 to $134.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on shares of Prudential Financial from $149.00 to $152.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $125.69.

Prudential Financial Trading Down 1.5 %

Shares of PRU stock opened at $109.45 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $39.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.99 and a beta of 1.31. The company has a quick ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. Prudential Financial has a fifty-two week low of $104.44 and a fifty-two week high of $130.55. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $116.88 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $119.62.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The financial services provider reported $2.96 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.36 by ($0.40). Prudential Financial had a net margin of 4.01% and a return on equity of 15.86%. On average, analysts anticipate that Prudential Financial will post 14.34 EPS for the current year.

Prudential Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 13th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be given a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.93%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 18th. This is an increase from Prudential Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. Prudential Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 72.29%.

Insider Activity at Prudential Financial

In other news, major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential bought 537,249 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 25th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $27.92 per share, for a total transaction of $14,999,992.08. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 4,780,293 shares in the company, valued at approximately $133,465,780.56. This trade represents a 12.66 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 0.31% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of PRU. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its position in Prudential Financial by 4,130.8% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 1,298,257 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $157,219,000 after purchasing an additional 1,267,571 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in Prudential Financial in the 4th quarter worth about $115,878,000. Northern Trust Corp grew its position in Prudential Financial by 23.7% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 4,686,690 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $555,513,000 after purchasing an additional 897,916 shares during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB grew its position in Prudential Financial by 176.8% in the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 1,041,420 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $123,804,000 after purchasing an additional 665,180 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in Prudential Financial in the 4th quarter worth about $76,303,000. Institutional investors own 56.83% of the company’s stock.

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.