Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) Posts Quarterly Earnings Results, Misses Estimates By $0.04 EPS

Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU) released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday. The financial services provider reported $3.12 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.16 by ($0.04), Briefing.com reports. Prudential Financial had a return on equity of 14.52% and a net margin of 4.89%. The company had revenue of $15.01 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.50 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.66 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 69.9% on a year-over-year basis.

Prudential Financial Trading Down 0.3 %

PRU traded down $0.36 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $110.12. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 351,143 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,499,380. The company has a current ratio of 0.13, a quick ratio of 0.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. The firm has a market cap of $39.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.41, a PEG ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 1.37. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $111.91 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $104.11. Prudential Financial has a 52-week low of $77.22 and a 52-week high of $118.69.

Prudential Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 20th were issued a $1.30 dividend. This is a boost from Prudential Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.25. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 16th. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.72%. Prudential Financial’s payout ratio is 77.73%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently weighed in on PRU. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on Prudential Financial from $112.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $118.00 price target (down previously from $119.00) on shares of Prudential Financial in a research note on Wednesday, January 3rd. Raymond James downgraded Prudential Financial from a “strong-buy” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 9th. TheStreet upgraded Prudential Financial from a “c+” rating to an “a-” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 6th. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their target price on Prudential Financial from $115.00 to $116.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 25th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eleven have given a hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $111.42.

Insider Transactions at Prudential Financial

In other news, EVP Ann M. Kappler sold 7,222 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $108.39, for a total transaction of $782,792.58. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 24,381 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,642,656.59. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, EVP Ann M. Kappler sold 7,222 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $108.39, for a total transaction of $782,792.58. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 24,381 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,642,656.59. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Timothy L. Schmidt sold 7,912 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $108.13, for a total value of $855,524.56. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 14,754 shares in the company, valued at $1,595,350.02. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 29,255 shares of company stock worth $3,215,664. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.