American Century Companies Inc. Raises Stake in Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG)

American Century Companies Inc. grew its holdings in Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG) by 65.0% in the second quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 166,052 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 65,385 shares during the quarter. American Century Companies Inc.’s holdings in Principal Financial Group were worth $13,027,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in PFG. Hsbc Holdings PLC grew its stake in shares of Principal Financial Group by 12.3% in the 4th quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 1,360,338 shares of the company’s stock valued at $107,030,000 after purchasing an additional 149,353 shares during the last quarter. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System grew its position in Principal Financial Group by 6.6% in the 1st quarter. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System now owns 296,889 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,624,000 after buying an additional 18,368 shares during the last quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers increased its stake in Principal Financial Group by 108.1% in the 1st quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 53,579 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,624,000 after buying an additional 27,827 shares during the period. Sei Investments Co. raised its position in Principal Financial Group by 59.4% during the 1st quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 24,275 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,095,000 after buying an additional 9,048 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sound Income Strategies LLC lifted its stake in shares of Principal Financial Group by 8.6% in the 1st quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 181,776 shares of the company’s stock worth $15,689,000 after acquiring an additional 14,339 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.08% of the company’s stock.

Principal Financial Group Trading Down 0.0 %

NYSE:PFG opened at $85.61 on Friday. Principal Financial Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $66.21 and a 52-week high of $88.26. The company has a quick ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 0.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $80.23 and a 200-day simple moving average of $80.99. The company has a market capitalization of $19.83 billion, a PE ratio of 16.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.87 and a beta of 1.19.

Principal Financial Group (NYSE:PFG) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The company reported $1.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.87 by ($0.24). The business had revenue of $4.31 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.78 billion. Principal Financial Group had a return on equity of 14.92% and a net margin of 8.05%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.53 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Principal Financial Group, Inc. will post 7.31 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Principal Financial Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 27th. Investors of record on Thursday, September 5th will be paid a $0.72 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, September 5th. This represents a $2.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.36%. This is a positive change from Principal Financial Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.71. Principal Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 54.96%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on shares of Principal Financial Group from $83.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Monday, July 29th. 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. Barclays initiated coverage on Principal Financial Group in a report on Wednesday, September 4th. They set an “underweight” rating and a $74.00 price objective on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on Principal Financial Group from $73.00 to $76.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, July 18th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of Principal Financial Group from $87.00 to $85.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, July 29th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Principal Financial Group presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $85.50.

Principal Financial Group Company 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.