Czech National Bank Has $3.22 Million Stake in Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG)

Czech National Bank grew its holdings in shares of Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG) by 6.5% in the second quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 41,091 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,499 shares during the quarter. Czech National Bank’s holdings in Principal Financial Group were worth $3,224,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Principal Financial Group during the 4th quarter valued at $253,990,000. RIA Advisory Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of Principal Financial Group by 35,473.1% in the 4th quarter. RIA Advisory Group LLC now owns 1,080,000 shares of the company’s stock worth $84,964,000 after buying an additional 1,076,964 shares during the last quarter. Pinebridge Investments L.P. grew its holdings in shares of Principal Financial Group by 2,594.0% in the fourth quarter. Pinebridge Investments L.P. now owns 575,986 shares of the company’s stock valued at $45,313,000 after acquiring an additional 554,606 shares in the last quarter. AMF Tjanstepension AB increased its position in shares of Principal Financial Group by 282.0% during the first quarter. AMF Tjanstepension AB now owns 308,308 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,633,000 after acquiring an additional 227,608 shares during the last quarter. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets raised its stake in shares of Principal Financial Group by 165.2% during the 1st quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 337,877 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,162,000 after purchasing an additional 210,476 shares during the period. 75.08% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Principal Financial Group Price Performance

NYSE PFG traded up $0.08 during trading on Monday, reaching $74.86. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 279,738 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,127,816. The stock has a market capitalization of $17.55 billion, a PE ratio of 14.29, a P/E/G ratio of 0.81 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 0.29 and a quick ratio of 0.29. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $80.08 and a 200 day moving average of $80.97. Principal Financial Group, Inc. has a one year low of $66.21 and a one year high of $88.26.

Principal Financial Group (NYSE:PFG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 25th. The company reported $1.63 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.87 by ($0.24). Principal Financial Group had a return on equity of 14.92% and a net margin of 8.05%. The company had revenue of $4.31 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.78 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.53 earnings per share. Analysts expect that Principal Financial Group, Inc. will post 7.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Principal Financial Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 27th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, September 5th will be issued a dividend of $0.72 per share. This is an increase from Principal Financial Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.71. This represents a $2.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.85%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, September 5th. Principal Financial Group’s payout ratio is currently 54.96%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on PFG shares. Bank of America lifted their price target on shares of Principal Financial Group from $87.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, July 11th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their target price on shares of Principal Financial Group from $88.00 to $86.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, July 30th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on shares of Principal Financial Group from $83.00 to $87.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Monday, July 29th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of Principal Financial Group from $87.00 to $85.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, July 29th. 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 research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $85.50.

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.