Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) Cut to “Hold” at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen cut shares of Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research note released on Saturday,Wall Street Zen reports.

A number of other equities analysts have also commented on PRU. Barclays raised their price target on Prudential Financial from $90.00 to $92.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 7th. TD Cowen lifted their target price on Prudential Financial from $102.00 to $114.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Prudential Financial from $103.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 19th. Argus lowered shares of Prudential Financial from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 9th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of Prudential Financial from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Thursday, July 16th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and five have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Prudential Financial has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus price target of $109.31.

Prudential Financial Trading Up 0.2%

NYSE:PRU opened at $119.43 on Friday. Prudential Financial has a 12 month low of $91.89 and a 12 month high of $127.72. The company has a current ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $120.14 and its 200 day moving average is $107.56. The stock has a market capitalization of $41.20 billion, a PE ratio of 10.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.79 and a beta of 0.83.

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

Prudential Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 25th were issued a dividend of $1.40 per share. This represents a $5.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, August 25th. Prudential Financial’s payout ratio is currently 50.72%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential sold 214,746 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.75, for a total value of $5,314,963.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 7,973,657 shares in the company, valued at approximately $197,348,010.75. This represents a 2.62% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Ann M. Kappler sold 7,652 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $125.01, for a total value of $956,576.52. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 14,407 shares in the company, valued at $1,801,019.07. This trade represents a 34.69% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.05% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Prudential Financial

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Plimoth Trust Co. LLC grew its position in Prudential Financial by 2.4% during the 2nd quarter. Plimoth Trust Co. LLC now owns 3,860 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $417,000 after acquiring an additional 90 shares during the last quarter. Keating Financial Advisory Services Inc. lifted its position in 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 purchasing an additional 102 shares during the last quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC boosted its stake in shares of Prudential Financial by 5.6% during the fourth 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 period. Western Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 1.7% in the fourth 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 last quarter. Finally, Apella Capital LLC grew its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 3.7% in the first 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.

Prudential Financial Company Profile

Prudential Financial, Inc is a global financial services company headquartered in Newark, New Jersey. Founded in 1875 as The Widows and Orphans Friendly Society, the company has grown from a life insurance provider into a diversified business offering insurance, retirement, investment management and related financial services.

Through its U.S. businesses, Prudential provides individual life insurance and annuities, workplace retirement plans, pension risk transfer solutions, group life and disability insurance, and other benefits and financial wellness products.