Principal Financial Group (NYSE:PFG) Price Target Lowered to $85.00 at Wells Fargo & Company

Principal Financial Group (NYSE:PFG) had its price target decreased by stock analysts at Wells Fargo & Company from $91.00 to $85.00 in a research note issued on Monday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an “equal weight” rating on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company‘s price objective points to a potential upside of 5.97% from the company’s previous close.

Several other brokerages have also recently issued reports on PFG. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on shares of Principal Financial Group from $85.00 to $89.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of Principal Financial Group from $81.00 to $82.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, April 15th. Evercore ISI raised their target price on Principal Financial Group from $84.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on Principal Financial Group from $75.00 to $83.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 14th. Finally, Piper Sandler increased their price objective on Principal Financial Group from $85.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, April 5th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and ten have issued a hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $80.09.

Principal Financial Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE PFG traded up $1.09 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $80.21. 502,632 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,122,881. The company has a market capitalization of $18.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.84 and a beta of 1.25. Principal Financial Group has a 52-week low of $65.17 and a 52-week high of $86.79. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $81.78 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $77.55. The company has a quick ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 0.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35.

Principal Financial Group (NYSE:PFG) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The company reported $1.65 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.74 by ($0.09). The business had revenue of $4.05 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.68 billion. Principal Financial Group had a return on equity of 15.06% and a net margin of 8.70%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.48 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Principal Financial Group will post 7.58 EPS for the current year.

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

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Principal Financial Group

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. increased its position in Principal Financial Group by 1.3% during the third quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 100,690 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,257,000 after acquiring an additional 1,339 shares during the last quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC lifted its stake in Principal Financial Group by 0.4% in the third quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 85,524 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,164,000 after purchasing an additional 376 shares during the last quarter. Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund grew its stake in shares of Principal Financial Group by 9.2% during the third quarter. Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund now owns 109,551 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,895,000 after buying an additional 9,200 shares during the last quarter. SVB Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of Principal Financial Group during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $208,000. Finally, Xponance Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Principal Financial Group by 1.3% during the 3rd quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 31,636 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,280,000 after acquiring an additional 420 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.08% of the company’s stock.

About Principal Financial Group

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.