Wells Fargo & Company Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) Stock

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) had its price objective boosted by research analysts at Wells Fargo & Company from $113.00 to $115.00 in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an “equal weight” rating on the financial services provider’s stock. Wells Fargo & Company‘s price target would suggest a potential downside of 2.06% from the company’s previous close.

Several other research analysts have also weighed in on PRU. Barclays reduced their price objective on shares of Prudential Financial from $120.00 to $117.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Prudential Financial in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of Prudential Financial from $117.00 to $118.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 7th. Piper Sandler raised their price objective on Prudential Financial from $110.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 23rd. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut Prudential Financial from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $118.80.

Prudential Financial Trading Down 0.3%

Shares of Prudential Financial stock traded down $0.33 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $117.42. 75,969 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,418,111. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $111.27 and a 200-day moving average price of $106.98. The firm has a market capitalization of $41.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.13, a P/E/G ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 0.97. The company has a quick ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58. Prudential Financial has a twelve month low of $90.38 and a twelve month high of $123.88.

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 15th. The financial services provider reported $3.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. The firm had revenue of $8.35 billion for the quarter. Prudential Financial had a return on equity of 16.60% and a net margin of 4.65%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Prudential Financial will post 14.36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Prudential Financial

In related news, SVP Timothy L. Schmidt sold 8,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 11,535 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,242,204.15. This represents a 40.95% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Chairman Charles F. Lowrey sold 48,164 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $107.39, for a total value of $5,172,331.96. Following the transaction, the chairman directly owned 165,564 shares in the company, valued at $17,779,917.96. This trade represents a 22.54% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 62,719 shares of company stock valued at $6,796,067 over the last 90 days. 0.25% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Prudential Financial

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Sunflower Bank N.A. increased its stake in shares of Prudential Financial by 3.2% during the 4th quarter. Sunflower Bank N.A. now owns 2,911 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $329,000 after purchasing an additional 91 shares during the last quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC boosted its stake in Prudential Financial by 0.3% in the 3rd quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 28,795 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,987,000 after purchasing an additional 97 shares during the period. Proffitt & Goodson Inc. increased its position in Prudential Financial by 12.7% during the second quarter. Proffitt & Goodson Inc. now owns 871 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $94,000 after acquiring an additional 98 shares during the period. Summit Global Investments grew its position in shares of Prudential Financial by 1.3% during the 2nd quarter. Summit Global Investments now owns 7,609 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $817,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mindset Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Prudential Financial by 2.1% during the third quarter. Mindset Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,781 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $496,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the period. 56.83% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.