Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. Acquires 14,484 Shares of Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG)

Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG) by 4.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 353,846 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 14,484 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. owned about 0.15% of Principal Financial Group worth $27,568,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its position in shares of Principal Financial Group by 5.1% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 2,462,562 shares of the company’s stock worth $211,534,000 after buying an additional 118,722 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Principal Financial Group by 3.2% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,448,507 shares of the company’s stock valued at $112,129,000 after acquiring an additional 44,818 shares during the period. Amundi boosted its stake in shares of Principal Financial Group by 24.1% in the 4th quarter. Amundi now owns 1,359,779 shares of the company’s stock valued at $106,511,000 after purchasing an additional 264,383 shares in the last quarter. Barclays PLC grew its holdings in shares of Principal Financial Group by 12.3% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 806,672 shares of the company’s stock worth $69,293,000 after purchasing an additional 88,179 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AustralianSuper Pty Ltd increased its position in shares of Principal Financial Group by 23.2% during the 4th quarter. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd now owns 665,410 shares of the company’s stock worth $51,509,000 after purchasing an additional 125,198 shares in the last quarter. 75.08% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Principal Financial Group Trading Down 2.4 %

Shares of NYSE PFG opened at $83.06 on Monday. Principal Financial Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $72.21 and a fifty-two week high of $91.98. The firm has a market capitalization of $18.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.43, a P/E/G ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 1.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 0.29 and a quick ratio of 0.30. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $84.15 and its 200 day simple moving average is $83.69.

Principal Financial Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 12th were given a dividend of $0.75 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 12th. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.61%. This is an increase from Principal Financial Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.73. Principal Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio is 44.91%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have commented on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Principal Financial Group from $69.00 to $74.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and set a $91.00 price target on shares of Principal Financial Group in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Barclays lifted their price objective on Principal Financial Group from $77.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Piper Sandler raised their target price on Principal Financial Group from $90.00 to $93.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Principal Financial Group from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and cut their price target for the company from $95.00 to $92.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Principal Financial Group presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $85.92.

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.