Foster & Motley Inc. Cuts Position in Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG)

Foster & Motley Inc. reduced its position in shares of Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG) by 4.8% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 36,196 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,842 shares during the period. Foster & Motley Inc.’s holdings in Principal Financial Group were worth $2,848,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in Principal Financial Group by 143.0% in the third quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 384 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 226 shares during the last quarter. Fortis Group Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Principal Financial Group during the third quarter worth $33,000. PrairieView Partners LLC acquired a new position in Principal Financial Group during the fourth quarter worth $39,000. Anchor Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in Principal Financial Group during the fourth quarter worth $40,000. Finally, Valley National Advisers Inc. lifted its stake in Principal Financial Group by 81.7% during the third quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc. now owns 556 shares of the company’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 250 shares in the last quarter. 75.08% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Principal Financial Group Price Performance

Shares of PFG opened at $81.32 on Tuesday. Principal Financial Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $65.17 and a fifty-two week high of $86.79. The company has a market capitalization of $19.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.85 and a beta of 1.25. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $81.68 and a 200-day simple moving average of $77.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a quick ratio of 0.30 and a current ratio of 0.30.

Principal Financial Group (NYSE:PFG) last announced its earnings results on Monday, February 12th. The company reported $1.83 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.70 by $0.13. Principal Financial Group had a net margin of 4.56% and a return on equity of 15.14%. The business had revenue of $2.69 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.53 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.70 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Principal Financial Group, Inc. will post 7.6 earnings per share for the current year.

Principal Financial Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 28th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 12th were given a $0.69 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 11th. This represents a $2.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.39%. This is an increase from Principal Financial Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.67. Principal Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 112.65%.

Principal Financial Group announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback plan on Monday, February 12th that permits the company to repurchase $1.50 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to reacquire up to 7.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Piper Sandler increased their price objective on Principal Financial Group from $85.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, April 5th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Principal Financial Group from $86.00 to $91.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on Principal Financial Group from $85.00 to $89.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Evercore ISI increased their price objective on Principal Financial Group from $84.00 to $86.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on Principal Financial Group from $75.00 to $83.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 14th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and ten have issued a hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Principal Financial Group presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $80.64.

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.