Columbus Macro LLC Reduces Position in Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG)

Columbus Macro LLC decreased its position in Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG) by 3.2% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 17,484 shares of the company’s stock after selling 569 shares during the period. Columbus Macro LLC’s holdings in Principal Financial Group were worth $1,512,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. EdgeRock Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Principal Financial Group in the second quarter valued at about $26,000. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC purchased a new position in Principal Financial Group during the 2nd quarter valued at about $32,000. Family Firm Inc. bought a new position in Principal Financial Group during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Riverview Trust Co purchased a new stake in Principal Financial Group in the 1st quarter worth approximately $34,000. Finally, Salomon & Ludwin LLC grew its position in shares of Principal Financial Group by 319.3% in the 1st quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 499 shares of the company’s stock worth $43,000 after buying an additional 380 shares during the last quarter. 75.08% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

PFG has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on Principal Financial Group from $85.00 to $83.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 19th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped 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. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Principal Financial Group from $74.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Principal Financial Group from $68.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd. Finally, Bank of America cut their price objective on Principal Financial Group from $94.00 to $91.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Principal Financial Group presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $85.42.

Principal Financial Group Stock Down 0.9 %

PFG stock traded down $0.80 on Friday, reaching $90.46. 998,194 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,121,354. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $82.75 and a 200-day simple moving average of $81.57. The company has a market cap of $20.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 1.19. Principal Financial Group, Inc. has a one year low of $66.21 and a one year high of $91.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 0.29 and a quick ratio of 0.29.

Principal Financial Group (NYSE:PFG) last issued its quarterly earnings results 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). The company had revenue of $4.31 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.78 billion. Principal Financial Group had a net margin of 8.05% and a return on equity of 14.92%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.53 earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that Principal Financial Group, Inc. will post 7.31 earnings per share for the current year.

Principal Financial Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 27th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, September 5th were issued a $0.72 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, September 5th. This is a boost from Principal Financial Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.71. This represents a $2.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.18%. Principal Financial Group’s payout ratio is 55.92%.

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.