Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) Upgraded by Wall Street Zen to Buy Rating

by · The Markets Daily

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU – Free Report) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report published on Saturday morning.

A number of other research firms have also issued reports on PRU. Weiss Ratings raised Prudential Financial from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on Prudential Financial from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, July 10th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on Prudential Financial from $113.00 to $123.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. Zacks Research raised Prudential Financial from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, June 12th. Finally, Argus downgraded shares of Prudential Financial from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and five have issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $109.31.

Get Our Latest Stock Report on Prudential Financial

Prudential Financial Stock Performance

Shares of PRU stock opened at $119.80 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a current ratio of 0.16. The stock has a market cap of $41.33 billion, a PE ratio of 10.85, a P/E/G ratio of 2.25 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 stock has a fifty day moving average price of $117.95 and a 200 day moving average price of $106.27.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU – Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The financial services provider reported $4.08 earnings per share 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 business had revenue of $14.15 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.36 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $3.58 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that Prudential Financial will post 14.51 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Prudential Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 25th will be paid a dividend of $1.40 per share. This represents a $5.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 25th. Prudential Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 50.72%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential sold 214,746 shares of Prudential Financial stock in a transaction on 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 document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Ann M. Kappler sold 7,652 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $125.01, for a total value of $956,576.52. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 14,407 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,801,019.07. The trade was a 34.69% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 0.05% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Prudential Financial

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Jessup Wealth Management Inc acquired a new position in shares of Prudential Financial in the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Garton & Associates Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Prudential Financial during the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Archer Investment Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Prudential Financial during the 2nd quarter worth $26,000. Basepoint Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of Prudential Financial in the 4th quarter worth $30,000. Finally, Coston McIsaac & Partners boosted its holdings in Prudential Financial by 93.4% in the fourth quarter. Coston McIsaac & Partners now owns 265 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 128 shares during the last quarter. 56.83% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Prudential Financial Company Profile

(Get Free Report)

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.

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