Piper Sandler Has Lowered Expectations for Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) Stock Price

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) had its target price decreased by Piper Sandler from $122.00 to $110.00 in a research report sent to investors on Tuesday morning,Benzinga reports. Piper Sandler currently has a neutral rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

A number of other equities research analysts have also commented on PRU. BMO Capital Markets assumed coverage on Prudential Financial in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. They set an “underperform” rating and a $101.00 price target on the stock. UBS Group reduced their price target on Prudential Financial from $130.00 to $122.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Prudential Financial from $134.00 to $106.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 11th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their target price on shares of Prudential Financial from $125.00 to $120.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on Prudential Financial from $118.00 to $108.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $121.85.

Prudential Financial Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:PRU opened at $100.20 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $35.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.41, a P/E/G ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 1.11. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $108.47 and its 200 day simple moving average is $117.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 0.16 and a quick ratio of 0.16. Prudential Financial has a fifty-two week low of $90.38 and a fifty-two week high of $130.55.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The financial services provider reported $2.96 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.36 by ($0.40). Prudential Financial had a return on equity of 15.86% and a net margin of 4.01%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Prudential Financial will post 14.36 earnings per share for the current year.

Prudential Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 13th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th were given a $1.35 dividend. This is an increase from Prudential Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 18th. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.39%. Prudential Financial’s dividend payout ratio is presently 72.29%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential acquired 87,047 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $28.72 per share, for a total transaction of $2,499,989.84. Following the purchase, the insider now directly owns 87,047 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,499,989.84. The trade was a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Andrew F. Sullivan sold 6,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $105.98, for a total value of $635,880.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 27,072 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,869,090.56. The trade was a 18.14 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.31% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Prudential Financial

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Barclays PLC lifted its stake in Prudential Financial by 11.0% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 1,062,776 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $128,700,000 after purchasing an additional 105,089 shares during the last quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Prudential Financial by 4.8% in the third quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,792 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $338,000 after buying an additional 127 shares in the last quarter. Arvest Bank Trust Division bought a new position in Prudential Financial in the third quarter valued at about $2,294,000. Tidal Investments LLC boosted its stake in shares of Prudential Financial by 22.5% in the 3rd quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 18,967 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,297,000 after purchasing an additional 3,483 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Synovus Financial Corp grew its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 22.1% during the 3rd quarter. Synovus Financial Corp now owns 3,004 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $364,000 after purchasing an additional 543 shares during the last quarter. 56.83% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.