Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC Acquires New Shares in Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG)

Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG) during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 1,757 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $151,000.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. EdgeRock Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Principal Financial Group in the second quarter worth about $26,000. Family Firm Inc. bought a new position in Principal Financial Group in the 2nd quarter valued at $33,000. Innealta Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Principal Financial Group during the 2nd quarter valued at $43,000. MCF Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Principal Financial Group by 55.6% in the second quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 613 shares of the company’s stock worth $48,000 after purchasing an additional 219 shares during the period. Finally, ORG Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Principal Financial Group by 334.8% in the second quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 787 shares of the company’s stock worth $62,000 after buying an additional 606 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 75.08% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently commented on PFG shares. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Principal Financial Group from $85.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Bank of America cut their price objective on Principal Financial Group from $94.00 to $91.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Principal Financial Group from $75.00 to $77.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Piper Sandler boosted their price target on shares of Principal Financial Group from $85.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. Finally, Raymond James raised shares of Principal Financial Group from a “market perform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and set a $99.00 price target on the stock in a report on Tuesday, July 9th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Principal Financial Group presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $85.58.

Principal Financial Group Price Performance

Shares of Principal Financial Group stock opened at $82.55 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 0.30 and a current ratio of 0.30. Principal Financial Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $68.69 and a 52-week high of $91.97. The company has a fifty day moving average of $84.64 and a 200-day moving average of $81.91. The stock has a market capitalization of $18.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -91.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.95 and a beta of 1.20.

Principal Financial Group (NYSE:PFG) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The company reported $1.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.02 by ($0.26). The business had revenue of $3.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.92 billion. Principal Financial Group had a negative net margin of 1.47% and a positive return on equity of 14.67%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.72 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Principal Financial Group, Inc. will post 7.12 EPS for the current year.

Principal Financial Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 18th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 2nd will be paid a $0.73 dividend. 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 yield of 3.54%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 2nd. Principal Financial Group’s payout ratio is -320.00%.

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.