Piper Sandler Issues Positive Forecast for Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) Stock Price

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) had its target price boosted by Piper Sandler from $120.00 to $133.00 in a research report released on Thursday morning,Benzinga reports. Piper Sandler currently has a neutral rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

Other research analysts also recently issued reports about the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their target price on Prudential Financial from $105.00 to $102.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 23rd. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Prudential Financial from $94.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price target on shares of Prudential Financial from $123.00 to $119.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 16th. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Prudential Financial from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 14th. Finally, Mizuho set a $108.00 price objective on shares of Prudential Financial in a research note on Monday, October 12th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and six have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and a consensus price target of $112.40.

Prudential Financial Price Performance

NYSE:PRU opened at $122.27 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 0.17, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. The company has a market capitalization of $42.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.13, a P/E/G ratio of 2.12 and a beta of 0.85. Prudential Financial has a 12 month low of $91.89 and a 12 month high of $128.78. The business’s 50-day moving average is $117.00 and its 200 day moving average is $108.91.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 3rd. The financial services provider reported $3.77 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.33 by $0.44. Prudential Financial had a return on equity of 16.38% and a net margin of 6.75%. The business had revenue of $14.45 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.66 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $4.26 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Prudential Financial will post 13.51 earnings per share for the current fiscal 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 paid a $1.40 dividend. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, August 25th. Prudential Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 50.96%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Ann Kappler sold 7,652 shares of Prudential Financial stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $125.01, for a total value of $956,576.52. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 14,407 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,801,019.07. The trade was a 34.69% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.05% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Prudential Financial

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in PRU. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in Prudential Financial during the second quarter worth about $3,507,481,000. State Street Corp lifted its position in shares of Prudential Financial by 1.2% during the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 17,164,760 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,852,593,000 after purchasing an additional 209,179 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in shares of Prudential Financial by 4.6% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,758,545 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $367,089,000 after purchasing an additional 166,641 shares in the last quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership boosted its stake in shares of Prudential Financial by 95.3% in the first quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 2,556,748 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $249,769,000 after purchasing an additional 1,247,371 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new position in shares of Prudential Financial in the second quarter valued at approximately $209,055,000. 56.83% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

More Prudential Financial News

Here are the key news stories impacting Prudential Financial this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Third-quarter earnings beat estimates by 13.9%, supported by PGIM and U.S. protection. Annuity sales also reached a 13-year high, highlighting strength in a key business. Zacks earnings analysis
• Positive Sentiment: Piper Sandler raised its price target to $133, while keeping a neutral rating. Prudential also expects its Japan units to resume operations on February 1 and is targeting about $3.1 billion in net proceeds from the sale of its Brazil and Mexico businesses. Piper Sandler rating Japan operations and divestiture
• Neutral Sentiment: The planned Japan restart and asset sale could help simplify Prudential’s business, but the proceeds and timing remain forward-looking and do not immediately resolve the earnings impact from the suspension.
• Negative Sentiment: Revenue fell short of estimates, and the Japan suspension weighed on results, including a reported $191 million income impact and a $1.3 billion Japan-related cost. These headwinds may be offsetting the earnings beat. Japan suspension and annuity sales
• Negative Sentiment: Bearish analyst signals may also be weighing on sentiment: Barclays maintained an underweight rating despite lifting its target to $98, and Zacks placed PRU on its Strong Sell list. Barclays rating Zacks Strong Sell list

About Prudential Financial

Prudential Financial, Inc (NYSE: PRU) is a global financial services company that provides insurance, retirement, investment management and related financial products. Founded in Newark, New Jersey, in 1875, the company serves individuals, businesses and institutional investors through a range of businesses and distribution channels.

In the United States, Prudential offers life insurance, annuities, retirement plans and employee benefits, including group life, disability and dental insurance.