Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Reduce” by Brokerages

Shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) have been assigned a consensus rating of “Reduce” from the seventeen brokerages that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat reports. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating on the company. The average twelve-month target price among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $105.4615.

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on PRU. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price target on Prudential Financial from $91.00 to $87.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 23rd. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on shares of Prudential Financial from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, July 10th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “underweight” rating and issued a $92.00 target price (down from $106.00) on shares of Prudential Financial in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on shares of Prudential Financial from $106.00 to $113.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Monday, July 13th. Finally, Piper Sandler increased their price target on shares of Prudential Financial from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 24th.

Prudential Financial Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:PRU opened at $121.34 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $42.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.99, a P/E/G ratio of 2.35 and a beta of 0.84. Prudential Financial has a 1 year low of $91.89 and a 1 year high of $127.72. The company has a current ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $112.86 and a 200 day simple moving average of $104.74.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The financial services provider reported $4.08 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.52 by $0.56. Prudential Financial had a return on equity of 16.68% and a net margin of 6.51%.The firm had revenue of $14.15 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.36 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $3.58 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Prudential Financial will post 13.92 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Prudential Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 11th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 26th were given a dividend of $1.40 per share. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, May 26th. Prudential Financial’s dividend payout ratio is presently 50.72%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Prudential Financial news, major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential sold 214,746 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.75, for a total value of $5,314,963.50. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 7,973,657 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $197,348,010.75. The trade was a 2.62% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.05% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. VCI Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Prudential Financial by 117.1% in the 4th quarter. VCI Wealth Management LLC now owns 19,292 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,178,000 after purchasing an additional 10,404 shares in the last quarter. KBC Group NV increased its position in shares of Prudential Financial by 94.3% during the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 157,538 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $17,783,000 after purchasing an additional 76,461 shares in the last quarter. Munich Reinsurance Co Stock Corp in Munich lifted its holdings in Prudential Financial by 2,669.0% during the 4th quarter. Munich Reinsurance Co Stock Corp in Munich now owns 46,990 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $5,342,000 after purchasing an additional 45,293 shares during the last quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp boosted its position in Prudential Financial by 9.1% in the fourth quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp now owns 171,486 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $19,357,000 after buying an additional 14,327 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Oxbow Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Prudential Financial during the fourth quarter worth about $6,545,000. 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.