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

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) was upgraded by analysts at Wall Street Zen from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note issued to investors on Saturday.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently weighed in on PRU. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Prudential Financial from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, June 12th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Prudential Financial from $92.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Monday, August 24th. Piper Sandler increased their price target on Prudential Financial from $110.00 to $128.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 11th. Weiss Ratings raised Prudential Financial from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 16th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on Prudential Financial from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, July 10th. 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’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Prudential Financial currently has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $109.31.

Prudential Financial Trading Up 0.0%

NYSE PRU opened at $119.80 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $41.33 billion, a PE ratio of 10.85, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 0.84. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $117.95 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $106.29. The company has a current ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62. Prudential Financial has a 12 month low of $91.89 and a 12 month high of $127.72.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 4th. The financial services provider reported $4.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.52 by $0.56. The company had revenue of $14.15 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.36 billion. Prudential Financial had a return on equity of 16.68% and a net margin of 6.51%.During the same period last year, the company earned $3.58 earnings per share. On average, analysts expect that Prudential Financial will post 14.51 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Prudential Financial

In other Prudential Financial news, EVP Ann M. Kappler sold 7,652 shares of Prudential Financial 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 sale, the executive vice president directly owned 14,407 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,801,019.07. The trade was a 34.69% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential sold 214,746 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $24.75, for a total transaction of $5,314,963.50. Following the transaction, the insider owned 7,973,657 shares in the company, valued at $197,348,010.75. This represents a 2.62% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders own 0.05% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Keating Financial Advisory Services Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 34.8% in the second quarter. Keating Financial Advisory Services Inc. now owns 395 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $43,000 after acquiring an additional 102 shares during the period. Rossby Financial LCC increased its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 32.4% in the 4th quarter. Rossby Financial LCC now owns 421 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $48,000 after acquiring an additional 103 shares during the period. TD Private Client Wealth LLC raised its position in Prudential Financial by 5.6% in the 4th quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 1,972 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $223,000 after purchasing an additional 104 shares during the last quarter. Western Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in Prudential Financial by 1.7% during the 4th quarter. Western Wealth Management LLC now owns 6,215 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $702,000 after purchasing an additional 105 shares during the period. Finally, Apella Capital LLC grew its position in Prudential Financial by 3.7% during the 1st quarter. Apella Capital LLC now owns 2,979 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $303,000 after purchasing an additional 106 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 56.83% of the company’s stock.

About Prudential Financial

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.