JPMorgan Chase & Co. Cuts Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) Price Target to $126.00

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) had its price objective trimmed by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $128.00 to $126.00 in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a neutral rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

A number of other equities research analysts also recently weighed in on the company. BMO Capital Markets started coverage on Prudential Financial in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. They issued an “underperform” rating and a $101.00 target price for the company. Piper Sandler dropped their target price 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. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Prudential Financial from $128.00 to $134.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on shares of Prudential Financial from $136.00 to $128.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 28th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price objective on Prudential Financial from $129.00 to $125.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $126.08.

Prudential Financial Stock Down 8.1 %

Shares of NYSE PRU opened at $96.27 on Wednesday. Prudential Financial has a 52-week low of $95.73 and a 52-week high of $130.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a current ratio of 0.16. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $112.03 and its 200-day moving average price is $118.63. The company has a market capitalization of $34.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 1.28.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The financial services provider reported $2.96 EPS 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%. Equities analysts forecast that Prudential Financial will post 14.36 earnings per share for the current year.

Prudential Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 13th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th were paid a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 18th. This is an increase from Prudential Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.61%. Prudential Financial’s payout ratio is currently 72.29%.

Insider Transactions at Prudential Financial

In other news, major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential purchased 87,047 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $28.72 per share, with a total value of $2,499,989.84. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 87,047 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,499,989.84. This represents a ∞ increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Andrew F. Sullivan sold 6,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $105.98, for a total transaction of $635,880.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 27,072 shares in the company, valued at $2,869,090.56. The trade was a 18.14 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company 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 stock. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Prudential Financial by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 41,850,558 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $4,960,547,000 after acquiring an additional 220,671 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its stake in Prudential Financial by 0.3% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 17,007,013 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,059,549,000 after purchasing an additional 49,830 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Prudential Financial by 2.2% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 8,856,360 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,050,635,000 after purchasing an additional 193,681 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp raised its holdings in Prudential Financial by 23.7% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 4,686,690 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $555,513,000 after buying an additional 897,916 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its stake in shares of Prudential Financial by 11.5% in the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 3,410,363 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $404,230,000 after buying an additional 352,335 shares in the last quarter. 56.83% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.