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

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU - Free Report) had its price target cut by Piper Sandler from $127.00 to $124.00 in a research note published on Thursday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have a neutral rating on the financial services provider's stock.

Several other analysts have also recently weighed in on PRU. TD Cowen boosted their price objective on Prudential Financial from $130.00 to $133.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, November 27th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on shares of Prudential Financial from $149.00 to $152.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Bank of America increased their price target on Prudential Financial from $109.00 to $118.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Evercore ISI upgraded Prudential Financial from an "underperform" rating to an "inline" rating and upped their price objective for the company from $117.00 to $140.00 in a report on Thursday, November 14th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Prudential Financial from $117.00 to $115.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Prudential Financial currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $127.25.

Prudential Financial Price Performance

Shares of Prudential Financial stock traded up $0.58 during trading on Thursday, reaching $118.98. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,525,734 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,439,594. Prudential Financial has a one year low of $100.60 and a one year high of $130.55. The stock has a market capitalization of $42.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.75 and a beta of 1.31. The company has a current ratio of 0.14, a quick ratio of 0.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $122.12 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $120.65.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The financial services provider reported $3.48 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.47 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $19.48 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.57 billion. Prudential Financial had a net margin of 6.03% and a return on equity of 15.30%. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $3.44 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Prudential Financial will post 13.34 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Prudential Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 12th. Investors of record on Tuesday, November 19th were issued a dividend of $1.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, November 19th. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.37%. Prudential Financial's payout ratio is presently 46.22%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Prudential Financial

In other news, major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential acquired 537,249 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 25th. The stock was bought at an average price of $27.92 per share, with a total value of $14,999,992.08. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 4,780,293 shares in the company, valued at approximately $133,465,780.56. The trade was a 12.66 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.34% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Prudential Financial

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Prudential Financial by 4,130.8% during the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 1,298,257 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $157,219,000 after buying an additional 1,267,571 shares during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its stake in Prudential Financial by 176.8% in the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 1,041,420 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $123,804,000 after purchasing an additional 665,180 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its position in Prudential Financial by 97.4% during the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 724,244 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $84,874,000 after buying an additional 357,300 shares during the period. FMR LLC boosted its position in shares of Prudential Financial by 31.3% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,444,288 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $174,903,000 after acquiring an additional 344,254 shares during the period. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Prudential Financial by 4.1% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 8,662,679 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,047,872,000 after acquiring an additional 341,787 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 56.83% of the company's stock.

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.