Barclays Issues Positive Forecast for Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) Stock Price

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) had its price objective raised by Barclays from $119.00 to $129.00 in a research note released on Monday morning,Benzinga reports. Barclays currently has an equal weight rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

PRU has been the subject of a number of other reports. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Prudential Financial from $116.00 to $117.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Evercore ISI raised shares of Prudential Financial from an “underperform” rating to an “inline” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $117.00 to $140.00 in a research report on Thursday, November 14th. Bank of America upped their price target on shares of Prudential Financial from $109.00 to $118.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on shares of Prudential Financial from $149.00 to $152.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, Piper Sandler raised their target price on Prudential Financial from $121.00 to $127.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Prudential Financial presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $127.17.

Prudential Financial Stock Performance

Shares of Prudential Financial stock opened at $118.56 on Monday. Prudential Financial has a one year low of $100.60 and a one year high of $130.55. The company has a market capitalization of $42.21 billion, a PE ratio of 10.54, a P/E/G ratio of 0.87 and a beta of 1.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60, a quick ratio of 0.14 and a current ratio of 0.14. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $123.03 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $120.69.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The financial services provider reported $3.48 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.47 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $19.48 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.57 billion. Prudential Financial had a net margin of 6.03% and a return on equity of 15.30%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $3.44 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that Prudential Financial will post 13.35 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Prudential Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 12th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 19th were issued a $1.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, November 19th. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.39%. Prudential Financial’s payout ratio is 46.22%.

Insider Transactions at Prudential Financial

In related news, major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential acquired 537,249 shares of Prudential Financial stock in a transaction on Monday, November 25th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $27.92 per share, for a total transaction of $14,999,992.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 4,780,293 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $133,465,780.56. The trade was a 12.66 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.31% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Prudential Financial in the third quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC grew its holdings in Prudential Financial by 1,312.4% in the 2nd quarter. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC now owns 26,934 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 25,027 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP increased its stake in shares of Prudential Financial by 376.3% in the 3rd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 281 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 222 shares during the last quarter. Tompkins Financial Corp raised its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 61.7% during the 3rd quarter. Tompkins Financial Corp now owns 367 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $44,000 after acquiring an additional 140 shares during the period. Finally, GHP Investment Advisors Inc. boosted its position in shares of Prudential Financial by 235.4% during the 3rd quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 379 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $46,000 after acquiring an additional 266 shares during the last quarter. 56.83% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Prudential Financial Company Profile

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 PGIM, Retirement Strategies, Group Insurance, Individual Life, and International Businesses segments.