TD Cowen Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) Stock

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) had its price target boosted by stock analysts at TD Cowen from $102.00 to $114.00 in a report issued on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a “hold” rating on the financial services provider’s stock. TD Cowen’s target price would indicate a potential downside of 4.18% from the stock’s current price.

A number of other brokerages have also commented on PRU. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Prudential Financial from $100.00 to $103.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Mizuho raised their target price on Prudential Financial from $101.00 to $109.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. Wall Street Zen raised Prudential Financial from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Prudential Financial from $117.00 to $129.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded Prudential Financial from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, June 12th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and five have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus price target of $105.46.

Prudential Financial Trading Up 0.3%

Shares of Prudential Financial stock traded up $0.38 on Wednesday, hitting $118.97. The stock had a trading volume of 640,507 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,155,011. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $107.93 and a 200 day moving average of $104.18. The firm has a market capitalization of $41.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.24, a PEG ratio of 2.35 and a beta of 0.85. Prudential Financial has a twelve month low of $91.89 and a twelve month high of $120.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a current ratio of 0.16.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The financial services provider reported $3.61 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.09 by $0.52. Prudential Financial had a net margin of 5.83% and a return on equity of 16.33%. The business had revenue of $15.23 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.10 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $3.29 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Prudential Financial will post 13.81 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership increased its holdings in Prudential Financial by 95.3% in the first quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 2,556,748 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $249,769,000 after purchasing an additional 1,247,371 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Prudential Financial in the fourth quarter valued at $140,530,000. Marshall Wace LLP raised its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 230.3% during the fourth quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 1,374,966 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $155,206,000 after purchasing an additional 958,672 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 379.8% during the second quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 619,701 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $66,884,000 after purchasing an additional 490,553 shares during the period. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP boosted its position in shares of Prudential Financial by 37.3% during the 1st quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 1,588,247 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $155,156,000 after purchasing an additional 431,527 shares in the last quarter. 56.83% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Prudential Financial Company Profile

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.