Foster Group Inc. Reduces Stock Position in Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG)

Foster Group Inc. decreased its holdings in Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG) by 6.4% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 11,970 shares of the company’s stock after selling 820 shares during the period. Foster Group Inc.’s holdings in Principal Financial Group were worth $908,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. raised its position in Principal Financial Group by 932.1% during the 1st quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 4,124,958 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,765,000 after purchasing an additional 3,725,293 shares in the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP lifted its position in shares of Principal Financial Group by 72.7% during the first quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 4,902,024 shares of the company’s stock valued at $364,318,000 after buying an additional 2,063,939 shares during the last quarter. Morgan Stanley boosted its holdings in shares of Principal Financial Group by 67.3% in the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 4,514,124 shares of the company’s stock valued at $378,825,000 after buying an additional 1,816,343 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Principal Financial Group in the 4th quarter worth approximately $78,939,000. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada raised its stake in shares of Principal Financial Group by 307.9% during the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 1,133,674 shares of the company’s stock worth $83,223,000 after acquiring an additional 855,747 shares in the last quarter. 70.68% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on PFG shares. Barclays lowered their target price on shares of Principal Financial Group from $78.00 to $76.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, July 31st. 3M reaffirmed an “upgrade” rating on shares of Principal Financial Group in a research report on Friday, June 9th. StockNews.com raised Principal Financial Group from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, September 8th. Piper Sandler upped their price objective on shares of Principal Financial Group from $75.00 to $82.00 in a report on Friday, July 7th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $83.00 target price on shares of Principal Financial Group in a research note on Monday, July 31st. Five analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and nine have issued a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Principal Financial Group currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $76.54.

Principal Financial Group Stock Performance

NYSE:PFG traded up $0.05 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $76.95. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 2,388,679 shares, compared to its average volume of 788,166. The business’s fifty day moving average is $78.13 and its two-hundred day moving average is $73.93. The stock has a market cap of $18.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.89, a PEG ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.31. Principal Financial Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $65.17 and a 1 year high of $96.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38, a current ratio of 0.29 and a quick ratio of 0.29.

Principal Financial Group (NYSE:PFG) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 27th. The company reported $1.53 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.66 by ($0.13). Principal Financial Group had a return on equity of 15.85% and a net margin of 11.52%. The company had revenue of $3.50 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.49 billion. Analysts anticipate that Principal Financial Group, Inc. will post 6.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Principal Financial Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 29th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, September 7th will be issued a dividend of $0.65 per share. This represents a $2.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.38%. This is a positive change from Principal Financial Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.64. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, September 6th. Principal Financial Group’s payout ratio is 40.19%.

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 Global Investors, Principal International, and U.S. Insurance Solutions segments.