Piper Sandler Has Lowered Expectations for Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) Stock Price

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) had its price objective lowered by stock analysts at Piper Sandler from $105.00 to $99.00 in a report issued on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a “neutral” rating on the financial services provider’s stock. Piper Sandler’s price target would indicate a potential upside of 4.89% from the company’s previous close.

PRU has been the topic of several other reports. Barclays lowered shares of Prudential Financial from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and lowered their target price for the stock from $110.00 to $91.00 in a research note on Wednesday. Jefferies Financial Group lowered shares of Prudential Financial from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lowered their target price for the stock from $124.00 to $98.00 in a research note on Wednesday. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Prudential Financial from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Friday, March 13th. UBS Group lowered their target price on shares of Prudential Financial from $105.00 to $98.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 9th. Finally, Evercore reissued a “negative” rating on shares of Prudential Financial in a research note on Friday, March 6th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus price target of $101.75.

Prudential Financial Trading Down 0.5%

PRU stock opened at $94.38 on Wednesday. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $97.73 and its 200-day simple moving average is $104.77. The company has a quick ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58. Prudential Financial has a 52-week low of $91.89 and a 52-week high of $119.76. The firm has a market cap of $32.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.44, a PEG ratio of 1.22 and a beta of 0.95.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 3rd. The financial services provider reported $3.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.37 by ($0.07). Prudential Financial had a return on equity of 16.32% and a net margin of 6.20%.The firm had revenue of $14.52 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.48 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.96 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Prudential Financial will post 13.97 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Prudential Financial

In other Prudential Financial news, Director Thomas D. Stoddard acquired 250 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 17th. The stock was bought at an average price of $102.97 per share, for a total transaction of $25,742.50. Following the acquisition, the director owned 250 shares in the company, valued at approximately $25,742.50. The trade was a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Jacques Chappuis acquired 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 6th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $100.97 per share, with a total value of $100,970.00. Following the acquisition, the executive vice president owned 1,000 shares in the company, valued at $100,970. The trade was a ∞ increase in their position. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. In the last three months, insiders have purchased 1,650 shares of company stock valued at $168,841. 0.05% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Prudential Financial

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in PRU. Sunflower Bank N.A. increased its stake in shares of Prudential Financial by 3.2% in the 4th quarter. Sunflower Bank N.A. now owns 2,911 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $329,000 after acquiring an additional 91 shares during the last quarter. Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 10,022 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,131,000 after acquiring an additional 94 shares during the period. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 0.3% during the 3rd quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 28,795 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,987,000 after acquiring an additional 97 shares during the period. Transcend Capital Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 2.4% during the 4th quarter. Transcend Capital Advisors LLC now owns 4,175 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $471,000 after acquiring an additional 98 shares during the period. Finally, Mindset Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 2.1% during the 3rd quarter. Mindset Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,781 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $496,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 56.83% of the company’s stock.

More Prudential Financial News

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

• Positive Sentiment: PGIM leadership hire could modestly help business development and insurer relationships over time — appointment of Brian Towers to lead Global Insurance & Strategic Partnerships at PGIM. PGIM Appoints Brian Towers
• Neutral Sentiment: Company provided a conference call/transcript discussing the Japan situation and financial implications; useful for investors seeking detailed management commentary. PRU Discusses Extension of Sales Suspension (Transcript)
• Negative Sentiment: Prudential extended the suspension of new sales in Japan by another 180 days; management now expects a $525M–$575M hit to 2026 pre‑tax adjusted operating income, which is the primary near‑term earnings headwind. Prudential extends Japan sales suspension
• Negative Sentiment: News coverage frames the Japan misconduct probe and prolonged suspension as escalating (“getting ‘ugly’”), amplifying investor concern about earnings and reputational risk. Prudential Stock Slumps — Misconduct Probe
• Negative Sentiment: Multiple analyst downgrades and price‑target cuts followed the Japan update, reducing near‑term investor support:
  • Negative Sentiment: BMO cut target to $87 and moved to “underperform.” BMO note
  • Negative Sentiment: Barclays downgraded to “underweight,” target $91 (from $110). Barclays note
  • Negative Sentiment: Jefferies cut from “buy” to “hold,” target $98. Jefferies note
  • Negative Sentiment: Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered target to $100 (“market perform”). KBW note
  • Negative Sentiment: Piper Sandler cut target to $99 (“neutral”). Piper Sandler note

  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.

  Further Reading

  • Five stocks we like better than Prudential Financial