Principal Financial Group (NASDAQ:PFG) Shares Cross Below 50 Day Moving Average – Here’s Why

Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:PFG) passed below its fifty day moving average during trading on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $112.31 and traded as low as $110.82. Principal Financial Group shares last traded at $110.91, with a volume of 1,160,296 shares.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently weighed in on PFG shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on Principal Financial Group from $107.00 to $106.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 15th. UBS Group cut their target price on Principal Financial Group from $120.00 to $112.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, October 27th. Raymond James Financial restated an “outperform” rating and set a $121.00 price target on shares of Principal Financial Group in a report on Monday, August 17th. Evercore set a $111.00 price target on Principal Financial Group in a report on Wednesday, October 28th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised Principal Financial Group from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 12th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $107.75.

Principal Financial Group Stock Down 1.7%

The company has a quick ratio of 0.28, a current ratio of 0.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $112.31 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $104.06. The company has a market cap of $23.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.32, a P/E/G ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 0.87.

Principal Financial Group (NASDAQ:PFG) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, October 29th. The company reported $2.22 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.46 by ($0.24). Principal Financial Group had a net margin of 11.89% and a return on equity of 16.51%. The company had revenue of $4.62 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.31 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.32 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Principal Financial Group, Inc. will post 9.18 EPS for the current year.

Principal Financial Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 18th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, December 2nd will be paid a $0.85 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, December 2nd. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.1%. This is an increase from Principal Financial Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.84. Principal Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 37.33%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in Principal Financial Group during the second quarter worth $2,157,181,000. State Street Corp boosted its stake in shares of Principal Financial Group by 0.8% in the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 10,264,856 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,106,346,000 after buying an additional 85,014 shares during the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE grew its position in Principal Financial Group by 5.0% in the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 8,819,452 shares of the company’s stock worth $794,721,000 after acquiring an additional 420,319 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its stake in Principal Financial Group by 3.2% in the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,886,509 shares of the company’s stock valued at $350,187,000 after purchasing an additional 119,327 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Aberdeen Group plc boosted its position in Principal Financial Group by 1,290.5% during the third quarter. Aberdeen Group plc now owns 2,308,326 shares of the company’s stock worth $258,440,000 after purchasing an additional 2,142,316 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 75.08% of the company’s stock.

Principal Financial Group Company Profile

Principal Financial Group, Inc is a global financial services company that helps individuals and businesses build, protect and manage wealth. Its offerings include retirement plans, individual retirement accounts, investment products, life and disability insurance, and financial wellness solutions. The company also provides institutional investment management and pension-risk transfer services.

Principal serves employers, institutions and individual investors through a range of retirement and workplace benefits solutions.