Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) Rating Lowered to “Hold” at Argus

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) was downgraded by research analysts at Argus from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report issued on Tuesday.

A number of other research analysts have also issued reports on the stock. Mizuho upped their target price on shares of Prudential Financial from $96.00 to $101.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Prudential Financial from $89.00 to $90.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. UBS Group reduced their target price on shares of Prudential Financial from $105.00 to $98.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 9th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on shares of Prudential Financial from $100.00 to $106.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 13th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reduced their target price on shares of Prudential Financial from $91.00 to $87.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 23rd. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and six have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average target price of $101.50.

Prudential Financial Trading Down 0.8%

NYSE:PRU opened at $103.81 on Tuesday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $99.72 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $104.31. The stock has a market capitalization of $36.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.68, a PEG ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 0.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a current ratio of 0.16. Prudential Financial has a 1 year low of $91.89 and a 1 year high of $119.76.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The financial services provider reported $3.61 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.09 by $0.52. The company had revenue of $15.23 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.10 billion. Prudential Financial had a return on equity of 16.33% and a net margin of 5.83%.During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $3.29 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Prudential Financial will post 13.84 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Prudential Financial

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Jessup Wealth Management Inc purchased a new stake in shares of Prudential Financial during the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Garton & Associates Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Prudential Financial during the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Salomon & Ludwin LLC grew its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 98.3% during the 4th quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 230 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 114 shares during the period. Lodestone Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Prudential Financial during the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Finally, Basepoint Wealth LLC acquired a new position in Prudential Financial during the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Hedge funds and other 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.