Wells Fargo & Company Has Lowered Expectations for Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) Stock Price

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) had its target price decreased by stock analysts at Wells Fargo & Company from $103.00 to $95.00 in a research note issued on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an “underweight” rating on the financial services provider’s stock. Wells Fargo & Company‘s target price would indicate a potential downside of 2.03% from the stock’s previous close.

A number of other research firms have also recently commented on PRU. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods assumed coverage on Prudential Financial in a report on Thursday, March 26th. They set a “hold” rating and a $106.00 price target on the stock. Barclays decreased their price target on Prudential Financial from $119.00 to $110.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on Prudential Financial from $133.00 to $127.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 4th. Weiss Ratings downgraded Prudential Financial from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Friday, March 13th. Finally, Mizuho dropped their price target on Prudential Financial from $126.00 to $113.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 10th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Prudential Financial presently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and a consensus price target of $109.78.

Prudential Financial Stock Performance

PRU opened at $96.96 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $33.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.70, a PEG ratio of 1.20 and a beta of 0.95. Prudential Financial has a 1-year low of $91.89 and a 1-year high of $119.76. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $98.77 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $105.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 0.16 and a quick ratio of 0.16.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 3rd. The financial services provider reported $3.30 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.37 by ($0.07). The firm had revenue of $14.52 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.48 billion. Prudential Financial had a return on equity of 16.32% and a net margin of 6.20%.During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.96 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that Prudential Financial will post 14.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Prudential Financial

In other news, major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential purchased 1,406,739 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 23rd. The stock was bought at an average cost of $24.87 per share, with a total value of $34,985,598.93. Following the completion of the purchase, the insider owned 7,709,624 shares in the company, valued at approximately $191,738,348.88. This represents a 22.32% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Joseph J. Wolk purchased 400 shares of Prudential Financial stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 11th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $105.32 per share, for a total transaction of $42,128.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 400 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $42,128. The trade was a ∞ increase in their position. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders purchased a total of 1,408,389 shares of company stock valued at $35,154,439 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.05% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Prudential Financial

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Sunflower Bank N.A. increased its position in Prudential Financial by 3.2% in the fourth quarter. Sunflower Bank N.A. now owns 2,911 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $329,000 after purchasing an additional 91 shares during the last quarter. Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 10,022 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,131,000 after acquiring an additional 94 shares during the last quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 0.3% in the 3rd quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 28,795 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,987,000 after acquiring an additional 97 shares during the last quarter. Transcend Capital Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 2.4% in the 4th quarter. Transcend Capital Advisors LLC now owns 4,175 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $471,000 after acquiring an additional 98 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mindset Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 2.1% in the 3rd quarter. Mindset Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,781 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $496,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 56.83% of the company’s stock.

Prudential Financial News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Prudential Financial this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Prudential is highlighted as a high-dividend blue-chip (roughly ~5.8% yield in recent coverage), which supports income-focused demand and can stabilize the share price for long-term investors. 5 Blue-Chip Stocks with Highest Dividends
• Neutral Sentiment: Analysts expect a modest, single-digit increase in profits for Prudential’s upcoming Q1 FY2026 results; that reduces the risk of a large miss but also limits upside surprise potential. Quarterly Earnings Preview
• Neutral Sentiment: Wolfe Research maintains a Hold on PRU, signaling no near-term conviction to add or cut from a major research house. Wolfe Research Remains a Hold
• Negative Sentiment: Japan’s Financial Services Agency has intensified an inspection of Prudential’s Japanese unit over alleged employee and sales misconduct — a direct hit to a key international profit engine that raises potential compliance costs, fines, and reputational risk. Japan Scrutiny Tests Prudential Financial’s Governance And Japan Profit Engine
• Negative Sentiment: Multiple brokerages trimmed price targets and adjusted ratings this week (UBS to $98/neutral, Keefe Bruyette & Woods to $104/market perform, Wells Fargo to $95/underweight), signaling reduced analyst confidence and adding near-term selling pressure. UBS price target cut Keefe/Benzinga Wells/TickerReport
• Negative Sentiment: An institutional investor (Bfsg LLC) reduced its PRU stake by ~25.5% in the latest filing, which can signal reallocation or loss of confidence and may add to downward pressure. Bfsg LLC Decreases Holdings

About Prudential Financial

Prudential Financial, Inc, headquartered in Newark, New Jersey, is a diversified financial services company with roots dating to 1875. The firm provides a range of insurance, retirement and investment products aimed at helping individual and institutional clients manage risk, accumulate and protect wealth, and plan for retirement. Prudential’s long history in life insurance and related financial services has positioned it as a major participant in the U.S. insurance market and a provider of services to a broad client base.

Prudential’s core business activities include individual life insurance, annuities, retirement solutions and group insurance products for employers.