Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) Price Target Raised to $109.00

Key Points

• Mizuho raised Prudential Financial’s price target from $101 to $109 while keeping a neutral rating. The new target still implies a slight downside from the stock’s prior close.
• Other analysts have been mixed on PRU, with recent moves including Argus downgrading the stock to hold and several firms adjusting targets. Overall, the consensus rating remains Reduce with an average target of $102.75.
• Prudential reported strong quarterly results, beating earnings and revenue estimates with $3.61 EPS versus $3.09 expected and $15.23 billion in revenue versus $14.10 billion expected. The company’s shares opened at $114.08, above both its 50-day and 200-day moving averages.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU - Get Free Report) had its price target boosted by stock analysts at Mizuho from $101.00 to $109.00 in a note issued to investors on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a "neutral" rating on the financial services provider's stock. Mizuho's target price would indicate a potential downside of 4.46% from the stock's previous close.

PRU has been the subject of several other reports. Argus downgraded shares of Prudential Financial from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 9th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on shares of Prudential Financial from $100.00 to $106.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 13th. Zacks Research raised shares of Prudential Financial from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, June 12th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Prudential Financial from $93.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 12th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets cut their target price on Prudential Financial from $91.00 to $87.00 and set an "underperform" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 23rd. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and five have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and a consensus target price of $102.75.

Prudential Financial Stock Performance

Shares of PRU opened at $114.08 on Thursday. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $104.84 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $104.02. Prudential Financial has a twelve month low of $91.89 and a twelve month high of $119.76. The firm has a market cap of $39.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.73, a PEG ratio of 2.10 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a current ratio of 0.16.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The financial services provider reported $3.61 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 company had revenue of $15.23 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $14.10 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $3.29 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Prudential Financial will post 13.81 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Prudential Financial

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Sunflower Bank N.A. boosted its position in shares of Prudential Financial by 3.2% during the fourth quarter. Sunflower Bank N.A. now owns 2,911 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $329,000 after buying an additional 91 shares during the last quarter. Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in Prudential Financial by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 10,022 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,131,000 after acquiring an additional 94 shares in the last quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC boosted its holdings in Prudential Financial by 0.3% during the 3rd quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 28,795 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,987,000 after acquiring an additional 97 shares during the last quarter. Transcend Capital Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Prudential Financial by 2.4% in the 4th quarter. Transcend Capital Advisors LLC now owns 4,175 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $471,000 after acquiring an additional 98 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mindset Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 2.1% in the third quarter. Mindset Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,781 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $496,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. 56.83% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.

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