Brokerages Set Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) PT at $101.50

Shares of Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE:PRU) have received an average rating of “Reduce” from the sixteen analysts that are covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Five analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation and eleven have given a hold recommendation to the company. The average 1 year target price among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $101.50.

Several equities analysts have commented on PRU shares. UBS Group decreased 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. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Prudential Financial from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, June 12th. Jefferies Financial Group cut shares of Prudential Financial from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lowered their price objective for the stock from $124.00 to $98.00 in a research report on Wednesday, April 22nd. BMO Capital Markets lowered their price objective on shares of Prudential Financial from $91.00 to $87.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 23rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Prudential Financial from $93.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 12th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Prudential Financial

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Jessup Wealth Management Inc acquired a new stake in shares of Prudential Financial in the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Garton & Associates Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Prudential Financial during the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Salomon & Ludwin LLC increased its position in shares of Prudential Financial by 98.3% during the fourth quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 230 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 114 shares during the period. Lodestone Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Prudential Financial during the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Finally, Basepoint Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Prudential Financial during the fourth quarter worth $30,000. 56.83% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Prudential Financial Price Performance

Prudential Financial stock opened at $109.19 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 0.16 and a quick ratio of 0.16. Prudential Financial has a one year low of $91.89 and a one year high of $119.76. The firm has a market cap of $37.89 billion, a PE ratio of 11.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.97 and a beta of 0.86. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $100.98 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $104.34.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The financial services provider reported $3.61 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.09 by $0.52. Prudential Financial had a net margin of 5.83% and a return on equity of 16.33%. The firm had revenue of $15.23 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.10 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $3.29 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that Prudential Financial will post 13.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Prudential Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 11th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 26th were issued a $1.40 dividend. This represents a $5.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, May 26th. Prudential Financial’s dividend payout ratio is presently 57.61%.

Prudential Financial Company Profile

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.