Principal Financial Group, Inc. $PFG Stake Raised by Handelsbanken Fonder AB

Handelsbanken Fonder AB increased its holdings in Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:PFG) by 90.4% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 20,082 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 9,535 shares during the period. Handelsbanken Fonder AB’s holdings in Principal Financial Group were worth $1,771,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. purchased a new stake in Principal Financial Group in the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Quest 10 Wealth Builders Inc. lifted its stake in Principal Financial Group by 343.6% in the 4th quarter. Quest 10 Wealth Builders Inc. now owns 346 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 268 shares in the last quarter. FWL Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Principal Financial Group in the 3rd quarter worth about $32,000. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. lifted its stake in Principal Financial Group by 66.5% in the 4th quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. now owns 398 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 159 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Rialto Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in Principal Financial Group by 3,754.5% in the 4th quarter. Rialto Wealth Management LLC now owns 424 shares of the company’s stock worth $37,000 after acquiring an additional 413 shares in the last quarter. 75.08% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Principal Financial Group Price Performance

PFG opened at $103.85 on Tuesday. Principal Financial Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $75.00 and a fifty-two week high of $104.68. The business has a 50-day moving average of $94.96 and a 200-day moving average of $91.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 0.27 and a quick ratio of 0.27. The company has a market capitalization of $22.43 billion, a PE ratio of 14.86, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 0.89.

Principal Financial Group (NASDAQ:PFG) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The company reported $2.07 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.01 by $0.06. Principal Financial Group had a return on equity of 16.25% and a net margin of 10.10%.The business had revenue of $3.53 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.11 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.81 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Principal Financial Group, Inc. will post 9.36 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, June 26th. Investors of record on Monday, June 1st will be paid a $0.82 dividend. This represents a $3.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 1st. This is a positive change from Principal Financial Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.80. Principal Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 45.78%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, General Counsel George Djurasovic sold 2,571 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $100.83, for a total value of $259,233.93. Following the transaction, the general counsel directly owned 21,906 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,208,781.98. This trade represents a 10.50% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Wee Yee Cheong sold 9,183 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $101.26, for a total value of $929,870.58. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 77,188 shares in the company, valued at $7,816,056.88. The trade was a 10.63% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 28,317 shares of company stock worth $2,884,902 over the last three months. 1.13% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Barclays raised their price target on Principal Financial Group from $85.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Principal Financial Group from $95.00 to $107.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 21st. Evercore set a $108.00 price target on Principal Financial Group in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Bank of America cut their price target on Principal Financial Group from $96.00 to $92.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 14th. Finally, Weiss Ratings downgraded Principal Financial Group from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $98.10.

Principal Financial Group Company Profile

Principal Financial Group (NASDAQ: PFG) is a global financial services company headquartered in Des Moines, Iowa, that provides a range of retirement, investment and insurance solutions to individuals, employers and institutional clients. The firm’s business is organized around retirement services, asset management, and insurance products designed to help clients plan, invest for, and protect income over the long term.

Principal’s product and service offerings include retirement plan recordkeeping and administration for employer-sponsored plans, individual and group retirement annuities, life and disability insurance, employee benefits solutions, and wealth management services.