BMO Capital Markets Initiates Coverage on Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU)

BMO Capital Markets began coverage on shares of Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) in a report published on Thursday, MarketBeat reports. The brokerage issued an underperform rating and a $101.00 target price on the financial services provider’s stock.

Several other equities research analysts also recently issued reports on PRU. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on Prudential Financial from $149.00 to $152.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. TD Cowen lifted their price objective on Prudential Financial from $130.00 to $133.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 27th. Barclays cut their price target on Prudential Financial from $129.00 to $127.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Evercore ISI raised Prudential Financial from an “underperform” rating to an “inline” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $117.00 to $140.00 in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. Finally, Piper Sandler cut their price objective on shares of Prudential Financial from $127.00 to $124.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $125.31.

Prudential Financial Stock Performance

Shares of PRU opened at $117.22 on Thursday. Prudential Financial has a one year low of $100.60 and a one year high of $130.55. The company has a 50-day moving average of $121.29 and a two-hundred day moving average of $120.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 0.14 and a quick ratio of 0.14. The stock has a market cap of $41.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.42, a PEG ratio of 1.09 and a beta of 1.31.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The financial services provider reported $3.48 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.47 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $19.48 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.57 billion. Prudential Financial had a net margin of 6.03% and a return on equity of 15.30%. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $3.44 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Prudential Financial will post 13.24 earnings per share for the current year.

Prudential Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 12th. Investors of record on Tuesday, November 19th were issued a $1.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, November 19th. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.44%. Prudential Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 46.22%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Prudential Financial

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

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Sei Investments Co. raised its stake in Prudential Financial by 14.4% during the 2nd quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 66,187 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $7,757,000 after purchasing an additional 8,334 shares during the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in Prudential Financial by 20.7% during the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,737 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $218,000 after buying an additional 298 shares in the last quarter. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp increased its stake in Prudential Financial by 59.0% during the second quarter. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp now owns 68,757 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $8,058,000 after acquiring an additional 25,521 shares during the period. AlTi Global Inc. raised its holdings in Prudential Financial by 9.2% in the 2nd quarter. AlTi Global Inc. now owns 3,381 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $396,000 after acquiring an additional 285 shares in the last quarter. Finally, AXA S.A. lifted its position in shares of Prudential Financial by 2.5% in the 2nd quarter. AXA S.A. now owns 43,644 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $5,115,000 after acquiring an additional 1,077 shares during the period. 56.83% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.