AXQ Capital LP Buys Shares of 6,159 Principal Financial Group, Inc. $PFG

AXQ Capital LP bought a new stake in Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:PFG) during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor bought 6,159 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $543,000.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of PFG. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC bought a new position in Principal Financial Group in the first quarter valued at about $244,000. NewEdge Advisors LLC increased its position in Principal Financial Group by 24.1% in the first quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 7,503 shares of the company’s stock worth $633,000 after buying an additional 1,455 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC increased its position in Principal Financial Group by 11.9% in the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 4,678 shares of the company’s stock worth $395,000 after buying an additional 497 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in Principal Financial Group by 96.2% in the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,278 shares of the company’s stock worth $181,000 after buying an additional 1,117 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cerity Partners LLC increased its position in Principal Financial Group by 9.1% in the second quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 37,957 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,015,000 after buying an additional 3,175 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 75.08% of the company’s stock.

Principal Financial Group Stock Performance

NASDAQ:PFG opened at $101.19 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. Principal Financial Group, Inc. has a 12-month low of $75.00 and a 12-month high of $105.00. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $97.35 and a 200 day moving average price of $92.51. The stock has a market capitalization of $21.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.48, a P/E/G ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 0.88.

Principal Financial Group (NASDAQ:PFG) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The company reported $2.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.01 by $0.06. Principal Financial Group had a return on equity of 16.25% and a net margin of 10.10%.The firm had revenue of $3.53 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.11 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.81 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that Principal Financial Group, Inc. will post 9.36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Principal Financial Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 26th. Investors of record on Monday, June 1st will be given a dividend of $0.82 per share. This is an increase from Principal Financial Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.80. This represents a $3.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.2%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 1st. Principal Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 46.92%.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Wee Yee Cheong sold 7,534 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $103.16, for a total transaction of $777,207.44. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 66,443 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,854,259.88. This trade represents a 10.18% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, General Counsel George Djurasovic sold 2,571 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $100.83, for a total value of $259,233.93. Following the sale, the general counsel owned 21,906 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,208,781.98. This represents a 10.50% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 28,317 shares of company stock valued at $2,884,902 in the last quarter. 1.13% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have commented on PFG. Bank of America reduced their price target on Principal Financial Group from $96.00 to $92.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 14th. Weiss Ratings cut Principal Financial Group from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Principal Financial Group from $95.00 to $107.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 21st. UBS Group upped their price target on Principal Financial Group from $92.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. Finally, Evercore set a $108.00 price target on Principal Financial Group in a research report on Monday, April 27th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Principal Financial Group has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $98.10.

Principal Financial Group Company Profile

Principal Financial Group (NASDAQ: PFG) is a global financial services company headquartered in Des Moines, Iowa, that provides a range of retirement, investment and insurance solutions to individuals, employers and institutional clients. The firm’s business is organized around retirement services, asset management, and insurance products designed to help clients plan, invest for, and protect income over the long term.

Principal’s product and service offerings include retirement plan recordkeeping and administration for employer-sponsored plans, individual and group retirement annuities, life and disability insurance, employee benefits solutions, and wealth management services.