Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) Given New $116.00 Price Target at Wells Fargo & Company

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU - Free Report) had its target price upped by Wells Fargo & Company from $113.00 to $116.00 in a research note released on Thursday,Benzinga reports. Wells Fargo & Company currently has an equal weight rating on the financial services provider's stock.

Several other equities analysts have also recently issued reports on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Prudential Financial from $126.00 to $136.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Prudential Financial from $108.00 to $117.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, May 19th. Barclays increased their target price on Prudential Financial from $109.00 to $119.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday. Piper Sandler cut their target price on Prudential Financial from $110.00 to $109.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, UBS Group cut their target price on Prudential Financial from $122.00 to $110.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, May 27th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $122.15.

Prudential Financial Stock Performance

NYSE:PRU traded down $1.35 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $105.80. 1,386,343 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,662,044. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $105.18 and a 200-day simple moving average of $109.03. The stock has a market capitalization of $37.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.77, a P/E/G ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 1.07. The company has a quick ratio of 0.17, a current ratio of 0.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. Prudential Financial has a 1 year low of $90.38 and a 1 year high of $130.55.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The financial services provider reported $3.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.18 by $0.11. The firm had revenue of $13.61 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.76 billion. Prudential Financial had a return on equity of 15.84% and a net margin of 3.84%. The firm's quarterly revenue was down 38.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $3.12 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Prudential Financial will post 14.36 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, June 12th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 20th were given a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, May 20th. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.10%. Prudential Financial's dividend payout ratio is currently 85.58%.

Insider Activity

In related news, major shareholder Insurance Co Of Ame Prudential acquired 1,675,978 shares of Prudential Financial stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 16th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $28.64 per share, for a total transaction of $48,000,009.92. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 3,168,461 shares of the company's stock, valued at $90,744,723.04. The trade was a 112.29% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.25% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Prudential Financial

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in PRU. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 41,850,558 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $4,960,547,000 after purchasing an additional 220,671 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Prudential Financial by 2.2% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 8,856,360 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,050,635,000 after acquiring an additional 193,681 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp boosted its holdings in Prudential Financial by 23.7% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 4,686,690 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $555,513,000 after acquiring an additional 897,916 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. boosted its holdings in Prudential Financial by 2.7% in the first quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 4,440,003 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $495,859,000 after acquiring an additional 116,079 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Prudential Financial by 19.2% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 4,206,453 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $469,777,000 after acquiring an additional 678,028 shares during the last quarter. 56.83% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.