Zacks: Brokerages Expect Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) Will Announce Earnings of $2.74 Per Share

Brokerages forecast that Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU – Get Rating) will report $2.74 earnings per share (EPS) for the current quarter, Zacks Investment Research reports. Four analysts have issued estimates for Prudential Financial’s earnings. The lowest EPS estimate is $2.36 and the highest is $2.90. Prudential Financial reported earnings of $3.79 per share during the same quarter last year, which would suggest a negative year over year growth rate of 27.7%. The firm is expected to issue its next quarterly earnings report on Monday, January 1st.

According to Zacks, analysts expect that Prudential Financial will report full-year earnings of $11.65 per share for the current financial year, with EPS estimates ranging from $11.30 to $12.06. For the next fiscal year, analysts anticipate that the company will post earnings of $12.96 per share, with EPS estimates ranging from $12.50 to $13.64. Zacks’ EPS averages are an average based on a survey of sell-side research analysts that follow Prudential Financial.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU – Get Rating) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 3rd. The financial services provider reported $3.17 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.67 by $0.50. The firm had revenue of $13.66 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $13.93 billion. Prudential Financial had a net margin of 8.09% and a return on equity of 9.35%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $4.11 EPS.

PRU has been the topic of several recent research reports. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on shares of Prudential Financial in a research report on Tuesday, January 25th. They set an “underperform” rating and a $93.00 price target on the stock. StockNews.com began coverage on shares of Prudential Financial in a research report on Thursday, March 31st. They issued a “hold” rating on the stock. Wolfe Research began coverage on shares of Prudential Financial in a research report on Friday, January 21st. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $131.00 target price on the stock. Credit Suisse Group cut shares of Prudential Financial from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their target price for the company from $131.00 to $121.00 in a research report on Friday, March 25th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Prudential Financial from $113.00 to $120.00 in a research report on Tuesday, April 5th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $114.46.

Shares of PRU stock traded up $1.03 on Friday, hitting $101.19. 1,956,558 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,842,419. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $113.28 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $111.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44, a quick ratio of 0.06 and a current ratio of 0.06. The stock has a market capitalization of $37.95 billion, a PE ratio of 8.21, a PEG ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 1.48. Prudential Financial has a twelve month low of $94.51 and a twelve month high of $124.22.

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 16th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 24th will be given a dividend of $1.20 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 23rd. This represents a $4.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.74%. Prudential Financial’s dividend payout ratio is presently 38.93%.

In related news, EVP Andrew F. Sullivan sold 2,951 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $113.35, for a total transaction of $334,495.85. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Andrew F. Sullivan sold 2,231 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $106.28, for a total transaction of $237,110.68. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 8,444 shares of company stock worth $938,412 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.31% of the company’s stock.

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in PRU. SVB Wealth LLC increased its stake in Prudential Financial by 47.0% in the first quarter. SVB Wealth LLC now owns 10,465 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,236,000 after purchasing an additional 3,348 shares during the last quarter. Fort Point Capital Partners LLC increased its stake in Prudential Financial by 9.5% in the first quarter. Fort Point Capital Partners LLC now owns 2,482 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $293,000 after purchasing an additional 216 shares during the last quarter. Lumbard & Kellner LLC increased its stake in Prudential Financial by 0.4% in the first quarter. Lumbard & Kellner LLC now owns 74,388 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $8,790,000 after purchasing an additional 281 shares during the last quarter. Cadence Bank increased its stake in Prudential Financial by 2.0% in the first quarter. Cadence Bank now owns 146,545 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $17,317,000 after purchasing an additional 2,907 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Certified Advisory Corp purchased a new position in Prudential Financial in the first quarter valued at approximately $67,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 56.77% of the company’s stock.

Prudential Financial Company Profile (Get Rating)

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 eight segments: PGIM, Retirement, Group Insurance, Individual Annuities, Individual Life, Assurance IQ, International Businesses, and Closed Block.

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