Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) Upgraded at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) from a sell rating to a hold rating in a report issued on Saturday.

Other equities analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Prudential Financial from $126.00 to $136.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on shares of Prudential Financial from $117.00 to $113.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, July 14th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of Prudential Financial from $116.00 to $113.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 16th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price objective on shares of Prudential Financial from $120.00 to $117.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. Finally, UBS Group decreased their price objective on shares of Prudential Financial from $122.00 to $110.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, May 27th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $121.75.

Prudential Financial Trading Up 1.1%

Prudential Financial stock opened at $101.78 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a current ratio of 0.16. The firm has a market cap of $36.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.93 and a beta of 1.07. Prudential Financial has a 1 year low of $90.38 and a 1 year high of $130.55. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $104.89 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $107.12.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The financial services provider reported $3.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.22 by $0.36. The firm had revenue of $13.50 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $13.47 billion. Prudential Financial had a net margin of 2.75% and a return on equity of 15.80%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 2.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $3.39 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that Prudential Financial will post 14.36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential bought 1,675,978 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 16th. The stock was bought at an average price of $28.64 per share, with a total value of $48,000,009.92. Following the purchase, the insider directly owned 3,168,461 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $90,744,723.04. This represents a 112.29% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.25% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Prudential Financial

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of PRU. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC raised its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 3.6% during the 1st quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 20,771 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,320,000 after purchasing an additional 721 shares in the last quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 728.4% during the 1st quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 845 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $94,000 after purchasing an additional 743 shares in the last quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC raised its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 9.7% during the 1st quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 2,501 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $279,000 after purchasing an additional 222 shares in the last quarter. Bridgewater Associates LP raised its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 41.8% during the 4th quarter. Bridgewater Associates LP now owns 388,349 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $46,031,000 after purchasing an additional 114,459 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sound Income Strategies LLC raised its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 9.0% during the 1st quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 35,408 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,954,000 after purchasing an additional 2,913 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 56.83% of the company’s stock.

About Prudential Financial

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.