Steele Capital Management Inc. Invests $456,000 in Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG)

Steele Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 5,792 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $456,000.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in PFG. Fortis Group Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Principal Financial Group during the third quarter worth $33,000. PrairieView Partners LLC bought a new stake in Principal Financial Group in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Valley National Advisers Inc. lifted its position in shares of Principal Financial Group by 81.7% in 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. Anchor Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Principal Financial Group in the fourth quarter valued at about $40,000. Finally, Authentikos Wealth Advisory LLC bought a new stake in Principal Financial Group during the third quarter worth about $41,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.08% of the company’s stock.

Principal Financial Group Stock Performance

NYSE PFG traded down $0.27 on Tuesday, hitting $80.16. 124,623 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,121,655. The firm has a market capitalization of $18.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.35, a PEG ratio of 0.84 and a beta of 1.25. The business’s fifty day moving average is $81.79 and its two-hundred day moving average is $77.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 0.30 and a current ratio of 0.27. Principal Financial Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $65.17 and a 12 month high of $86.79.

Principal Financial Group (NYSE:PFG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The company reported $1.65 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.74 by ($0.09). Principal Financial Group had a return on equity of 15.06% and a net margin of 8.70%. The firm had revenue of $4.05 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.68 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.48 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Principal Financial Group, Inc. will post 7.58 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Principal Financial Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 12th were issued a $0.69 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 11th. This represents a $2.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.44%. This is a boost from Principal Financial Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.67. Principal Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 52.67%.

Principal Financial Group declared that its board has authorized a share buyback plan on Monday, February 12th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.50 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to reacquire up to 7.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are generally an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently commented on PFG. Morgan Stanley upped their price target 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. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on shares of 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. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on shares of Principal Financial Group from $91.00 to $85.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Monday. Evercore ISI raised their price objective on Principal Financial Group from $84.00 to $86.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a report on Thursday, April 11th. Finally, Piper Sandler upped their target price 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 analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and ten have given a hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $80.09.

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.