Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) Price Target Cut to $113.00 by Analysts at Morgan Stanley

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) had its price objective decreased by Morgan Stanley from $117.00 to $113.00 in a research note released on Monday,Benzinga reports. Morgan Stanley currently has an equal weight rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

A number of other analysts also recently issued reports on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price target on Prudential Financial from $120.00 to $117.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Prudential Financial from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, July 5th. Piper Sandler lowered their price target on Prudential Financial from $110.00 to $109.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Prudential Financial from $126.00 to $136.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. Finally, UBS Group reduced their target price on Prudential Financial from $122.00 to $110.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, May 27th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Prudential Financial currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $121.85.

Prudential Financial Price Performance

Shares of PRU stock opened at $105.54 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $37.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.73, a P/E/G ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 1.07. Prudential Financial has a fifty-two week low of $90.38 and a fifty-two week high of $130.55. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $105.28 and its 200-day moving average price is $108.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 0.17 and a current ratio of 0.17.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The financial services provider reported $3.29 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.18 by $0.11. Prudential Financial had a return on equity of 15.84% and a net margin of 3.84%. The business had revenue of $13.61 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.76 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $3.12 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 38.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Prudential Financial will post 14.36 earnings per share for the current year.

Prudential Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 12th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 20th were paid a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.12%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, May 20th. Prudential Financial’s payout ratio is currently 85.58%.

Insider Transactions at Prudential Financial

In other Prudential Financial news, major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential acquired 1,675,978 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 16th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $28.64 per share, with a total value of $48,000,009.92. Following the acquisition, the insider directly owned 3,168,461 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $90,744,723.04. This represents a 112.29% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.25% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Prudential Financial

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Altman Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in Prudential Financial by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Altman Advisors Inc. now owns 16,087 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,907,000 after purchasing an additional 94 shares during the period. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. lifted its stake in Prudential Financial by 7.0% during the fourth quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 1,506 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $179,000 after purchasing an additional 98 shares during the period. SPC Financial Inc. lifted its stake in Prudential Financial by 2.6% during the first quarter. SPC Financial Inc. now owns 3,973 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $444,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the period. NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC lifted its stake in Prudential Financial by 3.8% during the first quarter. NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC now owns 2,738 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $306,000 after purchasing an additional 101 shares during the period. Finally, Thrive Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Prudential Financial by 2.6% in the second quarter. Thrive Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,007 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $430,000 after acquiring an additional 101 shares during the last quarter. 56.83% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.