Prudential Shares Rise on Upgrade

New York, NY (TheStreet) -- Prudential(PRU) may bid for units that ING is trying sell off following its bailout by the Dutch government, Bloomberg reports.

The second largest US life insurer's near term acquisition targets may include ING's U.S. retirement business or Asian insurance unit rather than units owned by AIG, according to John Hall, an analyst at Wells Fargo, says Bloomberg.

Hall has raised his rating on Prudential to "outperform" from "market perform," explaining that the company is better-armed to flex its capital and financial muscle compared to many of its competitors.

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"Prudential looks much as it did prior to the financial crisis, in our opinion; with a business mix oriented toward higher returning segments, such as international life insurance, group insurance, and asset management," according to Wells Fargo.

"Beyond this, the company is well-capitalized both in the U.S., with a risk based-capital ratio above 400%, and in Japan, with a solvency ratio of more than 900%."

Prudential and MetLife(MET) are both mulling over acquisition options, while ING and AIG(AIG) are looking to sell assets after their government bailouts, says Bloomberg.

Prudential shares were up 2.9% at $50.51 at the closing bell, while its larger competitor Metlife was down 0.2% at $34.42. AIG closed down 0.8% at $35.

-- Written by Andrea Tse in New York

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