Piper Sandler Cuts Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) Price Target to $124.00

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) had its price objective reduced by Piper Sandler from $127.00 to $124.00 in a research note released on Thursday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a neutral rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

A number of other brokerages have also recently weighed in on PRU. TD Cowen boosted their price target on Prudential Financial from $130.00 to $133.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 27th. Bank of America boosted their price target on Prudential Financial from $109.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on Prudential Financial from $117.00 to $115.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Barclays boosted their price target on Prudential Financial from $119.00 to $129.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Evercore ISI raised Prudential Financial from an “underperform” rating to an “inline” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $117.00 to $140.00 in a research report on Thursday, November 14th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $127.25.

Prudential Financial Stock Performance

Shares of PRU stock opened at $118.98 on Thursday. Prudential Financial has a 1-year low of $100.60 and a 1-year high of $130.55. The company has a current ratio of 0.14, a quick ratio of 0.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. The company has a market capitalization of $42.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.58, a P/E/G ratio of 0.75 and a beta of 1.31. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $122.06 and its 200-day simple moving average is $120.66.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The financial services provider reported $3.48 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.47 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $19.48 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.57 billion. Prudential Financial had a return on equity of 15.30% and a net margin of 6.03%. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $3.44 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Prudential Financial will post 13.34 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Prudential Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 12th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, November 19th were paid a $1.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, November 19th. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.37%. Prudential Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 46.22%.

Insider Activity

In other Prudential Financial news, major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential bought 537,249 shares of Prudential Financial stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 25th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $27.92 per share, with a total value of $14,999,992.08. Following the acquisition, the insider now directly owns 4,780,293 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $133,465,780.56. The trade was a 12.66 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Grove Bank & Trust boosted its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 65.9% in the 4th quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 219 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 87 shares in the last quarter. Avidian Wealth Enterprises LLC lifted its holdings in Prudential Financial by 1.2% during the 3rd quarter. Avidian Wealth Enterprises LLC now owns 7,357 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $891,000 after buying an additional 89 shares in the last quarter. Daymark Wealth Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Prudential Financial by 3.9% during the 3rd quarter. Daymark Wealth Partners LLC now owns 2,616 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $317,000 after buying an additional 97 shares in the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. lifted its holdings in Prudential Financial by 2.7% during the 3rd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 3,660 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $443,000 after buying an additional 97 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Pure Financial Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Prudential Financial by 2.7% during the 3rd quarter. Pure Financial Advisors LLC now owns 3,748 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $454,000 after buying an additional 97 shares in the last quarter. 56.83% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Prudential Financial

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.