Navigoe LLC Takes $37,000 Position in Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG)

Navigoe LLC bought a new position in Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund bought 488 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $37,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of PFG. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Principal Financial Group by 2.6% in the 4th quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 5,223 shares of the company’s stock valued at $404,000 after purchasing an additional 132 shares in the last quarter. Leavell Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in Principal Financial Group by 5.4% during the fourth quarter. Leavell Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,693 shares of the company’s stock valued at $208,000 after buying an additional 138 shares during the period. CENTRAL TRUST Co grew its stake in shares of Principal Financial Group by 9.6% during the fourth quarter. CENTRAL TRUST Co now owns 1,730 shares of the company’s stock valued at $134,000 after buying an additional 151 shares during the last quarter. Cidel Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Principal Financial Group by 6.3% in the fourth quarter. Cidel Asset Management Inc. now owns 2,636 shares of the company’s stock worth $204,000 after buying an additional 156 shares during the period. Finally, Hartford Funds Management Co LLC lifted its stake in shares of Principal Financial Group by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. Hartford Funds Management Co LLC now owns 11,241 shares of the company’s stock valued at $870,000 after acquiring an additional 161 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.08% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have weighed in on PFG. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of Principal Financial Group from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and dropped their price target for the company from $95.00 to $92.00 in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Piper Sandler increased their target price on shares of Principal Financial Group from $93.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price target on Principal Financial Group from $88.00 to $86.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday. Barclays dropped their price objective on Principal Financial Group from $80.00 to $76.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 11th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and set a $91.00 target price on shares of Principal Financial Group in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Principal Financial Group has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $83.31.

Principal Financial Group Stock Performance

Shares of PFG stock opened at $74.59 on Wednesday. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $80.01 and its 200-day moving average price is $81.97. The stock has a market cap of $16.78 billion, a PE ratio of 11.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a current ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. Principal Financial Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $68.39 and a 12 month high of $91.98.

Principal Financial Group (NYSE:PFG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 28th. The company reported $1.81 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.83 by ($0.02). Principal Financial Group had a return on equity of 14.68% and a net margin of 9.74%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.65 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Principal Financial Group, Inc. will post 8.5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Principal Financial Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 27th. Investors of record on Monday, June 2nd will be paid a $0.76 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 2nd. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.08%. This is an increase from Principal Financial Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. Principal Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 65.10%.

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.