Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) Stock Price Expected to Rise, UBS Group Analyst Says

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) had its target price upped by UBS Group from $111.00 to $116.00 in a report released on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a “neutral” rating on the financial services provider’s stock. UBS Group’s price target would indicate a potential downside of 1.81% from the company’s previous close.

PRU has been the topic of a number of other reports. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Prudential Financial from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, November 8th. Wolfe Research began coverage on Prudential Financial in a research report on Tuesday, September 16th. They set a “peer perform” rating for the company. Mizuho began coverage on Prudential Financial in a research report on Tuesday, December 16th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $125.00 target price on the stock. Evercore ISI increased their price target on Prudential Financial from $120.00 to $122.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 30th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on Prudential Financial from $117.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 7th. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $118.60.

Prudential Financial Stock Down 0.5%

Shares of PRU opened at $118.13 on Thursday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $111.00 and its 200 day moving average is $106.90. The company has a current ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58. Prudential Financial has a 12-month low of $90.38 and a 12-month high of $123.88. The company has a market capitalization of $41.35 billion, a PE ratio of 16.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 0.97.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 15th. The financial services provider reported $3.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. Prudential Financial had a net margin of 4.65% and a return on equity of 16.60%. The business had revenue of $8.35 billion during the quarter. Research analysts expect that Prudential Financial will post 14.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Prudential Financial

In related news, SVP Timothy L. Schmidt sold 8,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $107.69, for a total transaction of $861,520.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 11,535 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,242,204.15. This represents a 40.95% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Caroline Feeney sold 6,555 shares of Prudential Financial stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $116.28, for a total transaction of $762,215.40. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 22,523 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,618,974.44. The trade was a 22.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 62,719 shares of company stock worth $6,796,067 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.25% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Prudential Financial

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in PRU. Mattson Financial Services LLC boosted its stake in shares of Prudential Financial by 312.8% during the third quarter. Mattson Financial Services LLC now owns 12,119 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,257,000 after purchasing an additional 9,183 shares during the period. Econ Financial Services Corp bought a new stake in Prudential Financial during the 2nd quarter valued at about $1,662,000. Capital Advisors Inc. OK boosted its position in Prudential Financial by 28.4% in the 3rd quarter. Capital Advisors Inc. OK now owns 384,404 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $39,878,000 after buying an additional 85,072 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB grew its stake in Prudential Financial by 49.2% in the 2nd quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 1,720,781 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $184,192,000 after acquiring an additional 567,571 shares in the last quarter. Finally, VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al increased its position in shares of Prudential Financial by 5.3% during the third quarter. VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al now owns 280,200 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $29,068,000 after acquiring an additional 14,200 shares during the period. 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.