WealthPlan Investment Management LLC Buys New Shares in Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:PFG)

WealthPlan Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:PFG – Get Rating) during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor bought 2,424 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $219,000.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Allworth Financial LP lifted its stake in shares of Principal Financial Group by 25.1% during the 3rd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 7,324 shares of the company’s stock valued at $528,000 after buying an additional 1,470 shares in the last quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. lifted its stake in Principal Financial Group by 175.1% in the 3rd quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 14,732 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,063,000 after purchasing an additional 9,377 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in Principal Financial Group by 58.1% in the 3rd quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. now owns 132,677 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,573,000 after purchasing an additional 48,750 shares in the last quarter. CAPROCK Group Inc. lifted its stake in Principal Financial Group by 4.1% in the 3rd quarter. CAPROCK Group Inc. now owns 3,645 shares of the company’s stock worth $263,000 after purchasing an additional 143 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quadrature Capital Ltd purchased a new stake in Principal Financial Group in the 3rd quarter worth $830,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.21% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have commented on PFG. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Principal Financial Group from $89.00 to $92.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 1st. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price target on shares of Principal Financial Group from $94.00 to $88.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, March 3rd. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on shares of Principal Financial Group from $61.00 to $71.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research note on Monday, January 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Principal Financial Group from $72.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 6th. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of Principal Financial Group from $76.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 24th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and five have issued a hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $78.64.

Principal Financial Group Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:PFG opened at $69.99 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $17.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 3.72, a PEG ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 1.30. Principal Financial Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $61.05 and a 12 month high of $96.17. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $87.41 and its 200 day moving average is $84.99. The company has a current ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 0.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40.

Principal Financial Group (NASDAQ:PFG – Get Rating) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 31st. The company reported $1.70 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.54 by $0.16. The company had revenue of $3.12 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.33 billion. Principal Financial Group had a net margin of 27.51% and a return on equity of 15.98%. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.85 EPS. Research analysts predict that Principal Financial Group, Inc. will post 6.88 EPS for the current year.

Principal Financial Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 31st. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.64 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 14th. This represents a $2.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.66%. Principal Financial Group’s payout ratio is 13.60%.

Principal Financial Group Profile

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Principal Financial Group, Inc engages in the investment management offering business. It offers financial products and services to businesses, individuals, and institutional clients. It operates its business through following segments: Retirement and Income Solutions, Principal Global Investors, Principal International, U.S.