Morgan Stanley Raises Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) Price Target to $117.00

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) had its target price lifted by Morgan Stanley from $109.00 to $117.00 in a research note issued to investors on Monday morning, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an equal weight rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

A number of other analysts have also weighed in on PRU. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued a neutral rating and issued a $118.00 price objective (down from $119.00) on shares of Prudential Financial in a research report on Wednesday, January 3rd. TheStreet upgraded shares of Prudential Financial from a c+ rating to an a- rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 6th. Raymond James downgraded shares of Prudential Financial from a strong-buy rating to a market perform rating in a research note on Friday, February 9th. Evercore ISI upped their target price on shares of Prudential Financial from $104.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an underperform rating in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. Finally, UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Prudential Financial from $108.00 to $112.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a research note on Monday, February 12th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eleven have assigned a hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $111.33.

Prudential Financial Stock Down 1.2 %

Shares of NYSE PRU opened at $108.36 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 0.13, a quick ratio of 0.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. Prudential Financial has a 12-month low of $77.22 and a 12-month high of $118.69. The stock has a market capitalization of $38.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.20, a P/E/G ratio of 0.74 and a beta of 1.37. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $111.15 and its 200-day moving average price is $102.78.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 6th. The financial services provider reported $2.58 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.67 by ($0.09). Prudential Financial had a return on equity of 14.52% and a net margin of 4.89%. The firm had revenue of $13.02 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $12.99 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.42 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Prudential Financial will post 13.4 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Prudential Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 14th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 20th were paid a dividend of $1.30 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 16th. This is an increase from Prudential Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.25. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.80%. Prudential Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 77.73%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Prudential Financial

In other Prudential Financial news, EVP Ann M. Kappler sold 7,222 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $108.39, for a total value of $782,792.58. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 24,381 shares in the company, valued at $2,642,656.59. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other Prudential Financial news, EVP Andrew F. Sullivan sold 7,685 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $111.57, for a total value of $857,415.45. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 13,691 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,527,504.87. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Ann M. Kappler sold 7,222 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $108.39, for a total transaction of $782,792.58. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 24,381 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,642,656.59. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 29,255 shares of company stock worth $3,215,664 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Cambridge Trust Co. raised its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 77.2% during the fourth quarter. Cambridge Trust Co. now owns 241 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 105 shares during the last quarter. Sanctuary Wealth Management L.L.C. purchased a new position in shares of Prudential Financial during the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC purchased a new position in shares of Prudential Financial during the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Headinvest LLC purchased a new position in shares of Prudential Financial during the third quarter worth $27,000. Finally, Fairfield Bush & CO. purchased a new position in shares of Prudential Financial during the first quarter worth $36,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 56.83% of the company’s stock.

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.