AustralianSuper Pty Ltd Acquires 115,569 Shares of Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG)

AustralianSuper Pty Ltd increased its holdings in shares of Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG) by 27.2% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 540,212 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 115,569 shares during the period. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd owned approximately 0.23% of Principal Financial Group worth $46,404,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System increased its position in Principal Financial Group by 6.6% during the first quarter. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System now owns 296,889 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,624,000 after acquiring an additional 18,368 shares during the period. Cetera Investment Advisers lifted its stake in shares of Principal Financial Group by 108.1% in the first 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. grew its position in Principal Financial Group by 59.4% during the first 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 in the last quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP acquired a new position in Principal Financial Group in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $1,097,000. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC raised its holdings in Principal Financial Group by 57.3% in the 2nd quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 178,635 shares of the company’s stock valued at $14,014,000 after acquiring an additional 65,070 shares in the last quarter. 75.08% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Principal Financial Group Trading Down 2.0 %

PFG stock traded down $1.69 during trading on Thursday, hitting $82.77. The company had a trading volume of 275,206 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,128,255. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $84.40 and a 200-day moving average price of $81.80. The stock has a market cap of $19.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.12, a PEG ratio of 0.88 and a beta of 1.19. Principal Financial Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $66.71 and a 12 month high of $91.97. The company has a quick ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 0.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35.

Principal Financial Group (NYSE:PFG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The company reported $1.76 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.02 by ($0.26). The firm had revenue of $3.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.92 billion. Principal Financial Group had a positive return on equity of 14.67% and a negative net margin of 1.47%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.72 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that Principal Financial Group, Inc. will post 7.28 earnings per share for the current year.

Principal Financial Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 18th. Investors of record on Monday, December 2nd will be paid a dividend of $0.73 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 2nd. This is a boost from Principal Financial Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.72. This represents a $2.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.53%. Principal Financial Group’s payout ratio is 55.73%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently commented on PFG. Citigroup raised their target price on Principal Financial Group from $68.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their target price on shares of Principal Financial Group from $88.00 to $86.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, July 30th. Royal Bank of Canada raised 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 research note on Monday, July 29th. Piper Sandler increased their target price on Principal Financial Group from $85.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on Principal Financial Group from $85.00 to $83.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, August 19th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $85.58.

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.