Public Sector Pension Investment Board Raises Position in Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG) - Defense World

Public Sector Pension Investment Board increased its position in Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG – Free Report) by 4.6% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 54,057 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 2,363 shares during the quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board’s holdings in Principal Financial Group were worth $3,896,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Merit Financial Group LLC raised its position in shares of Principal Financial Group by 2.3% in the 3rd quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 6,947 shares of the company’s stock worth $501,000 after buying an additional 153 shares during the period. Ieq Capital LLC raised its position in shares of Principal Financial Group by 30.6% in the 3rd quarter. Ieq Capital LLC now owns 5,412 shares of the company’s stock worth $390,000 after buying an additional 1,267 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. increased its holdings in Principal Financial Group by 12.6% in the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 2,231,757 shares of the company’s stock valued at $160,843,000 after purchasing an additional 249,127 shares in the last quarter. Adviser Investments LLC increased its holdings in Principal Financial Group by 5.5% in the 3rd quarter. Adviser Investments LLC now owns 3,957 shares of the company’s stock valued at $285,000 after purchasing an additional 205 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Baird Financial Group Inc. increased its holdings in Principal Financial Group by 0.5% in the 2nd quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 68,454 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,192,000 after purchasing an additional 371 shares in the last quarter. 70.68% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Principal Financial Group Stock Up 2.5 %

NYSE:PFG opened at $82.55 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $19.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.69, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 1.24. Principal Financial Group, Inc. has a one year low of $65.17 and a one year high of $84.65. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $79.55 and a 200 day simple moving average of $75.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a quick ratio of 0.30 and a current ratio of 0.30.

Principal Financial Group (NYSE:PFG – Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 12th. The company reported $1.83 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.70 by $0.13. The business had revenue of $2.69 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.53 billion. Principal Financial Group had a return on equity of 15.14% and a net margin of 4.56%. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.70 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Principal Financial Group, Inc. will post 7.6 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Principal Financial Group declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Monday, February 12th that allows the company to repurchase $1.50 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to buy up to 7.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Principal Financial Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 12th will be issued a $0.69 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 11th. This represents a $2.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.34%. This is a boost from Principal Financial Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.67. Principal Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 112.65%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

PFG has been the subject of several recent research reports. Evercore ISI upgraded Principal Financial Group from an “underperform” rating to an “inline” rating and increased their price target for the company from $82.00 to $83.00 in a report on Thursday, January 4th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on Principal Financial Group from $75.00 to $83.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 14th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Principal Financial Group from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 13th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on Principal Financial Group from $80.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, February 16th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and nine have assigned a hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Principal Financial Group presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $76.18.

Check Out Our Latest Stock Analysis on Principal Financial Group

Principal Financial Group Profile

(Free Report)

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.

Further Reading

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Public Sector Pension Investment Board Raises Position in Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG) - Defense World
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