Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG) Shares Sold by Vanguard Group Inc.

Vanguard Group Inc. trimmed its position in Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG) by 2.0% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 28,037,528 shares of the company’s stock after selling 568,351 shares during the quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. owned about 11.96% of Principal Financial Group worth $2,419,919,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in PFG. Spire Wealth Management raised its position in shares of Principal Financial Group by 152.0% during the 4th quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 373 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 225 shares during the period. EdgeRock Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Principal Financial Group in the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Principal Financial Group in the 4th quarter valued at $33,000. Riverview Trust Co purchased a new position in shares of Principal Financial Group during the 1st quarter worth $34,000. Finally, PrairieView Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Principal Financial Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.08% of the company’s stock.

Principal Financial Group Stock Performance

PFG traded down $0.63 during trading on Friday, reaching $84.71. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,199,941 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,207,418. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 0.29 and a current ratio of 0.29. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $81.17 and its 200-day moving average price is $80.92. Principal Financial Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $66.21 and a 52-week high of $88.26. The company has a market capitalization of $19.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.93 and a beta of 1.21.

Principal Financial Group (NYSE:PFG) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The company reported $1.65 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.74 by ($0.09). Principal Financial Group had a net margin of 8.70% and a return on equity of 15.06%. The business had revenue of $4.05 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.68 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.48 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Principal Financial Group, Inc. will post 7.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Principal Financial Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 27th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 3rd were paid a dividend of $0.71 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 3rd. This is a boost from Principal Financial Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.69. This represents a $2.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.35%. Principal Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio is 54.20%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on PFG. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on Principal Financial Group from $85.00 to $89.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Piper Sandler boosted their price target on shares of Principal Financial Group from $85.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, April 5th. Evercore ISI boosted their target price on shares of Principal Financial Group from $84.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Principal Financial Group from an “underweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and increased their target price for the company from $88.00 to $96.00 in a report on Tuesday, July 2nd. Finally, Raymond James raised Principal Financial Group from a “market perform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and set a $99.00 price target for the company in a report on Tuesday, July 9th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $84.75.

Principal Financial Group Profile

Principal Financial Group, Inc provides retirement, asset management, and insurance products and services to businesses, individuals, and institutional clients worldwide. The company operates through Retirement and Income Solutions, Principal Asset Management, and Benefits and Protection segments. The Retirement and Income Solutions segment provides retirement, and related financial products and services.