Desjardins Global Asset Management Inc. Lowers Position in Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG)

Desjardins Global Asset Management Inc. cut its holdings in shares of Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG) by 80.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,388 shares of the company’s stock after selling 5,800 shares during the quarter. Desjardins Global Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Principal Financial Group were worth $109,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Ellevest Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Principal Financial Group by 3.3% during the 3rd quarter. Ellevest Inc. now owns 4,644 shares of the company’s stock worth $335,000 after purchasing an additional 149 shares during the period. Ronald Blue Trust Inc. lifted its stake in Principal Financial Group by 26.6% during the 3rd quarter. Ronald Blue Trust Inc. now owns 713 shares of the company’s stock worth $54,000 after acquiring an additional 150 shares in the last quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC lifted its stake in Principal Financial Group by 2.3% during the 3rd quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 6,947 shares of the company’s stock worth $501,000 after acquiring an additional 153 shares in the last quarter. Quent Capital LLC lifted its stake in Principal Financial Group by 15.5% during the 4th quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 1,185 shares of the company’s stock worth $93,000 after acquiring an additional 159 shares in the last quarter. Finally, IHT Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in Principal Financial Group by 6.1% during the 2nd quarter. IHT Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,886 shares of the company’s stock worth $219,000 after acquiring an additional 167 shares in the last quarter. 75.08% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on Principal Financial Group from $75.00 to $83.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 14th. Piper Sandler increased their target price on Principal Financial Group from $85.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, April 5th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Principal Financial Group from $86.00 to $91.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Principal Financial Group from $81.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, April 15th. Finally, Evercore ISI increased their price target on Principal Financial Group from $84.00 to $86.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and ten have assigned a hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $80.64.

Principal Financial Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE PFG opened at $80.44 on Friday. 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, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $65.17 and a fifty-two week high of $86.79. The firm has a market capitalization of $18.92 billion, a PE ratio of 32.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 1.25. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $81.64 and its 200-day simple moving average is $77.04.

Principal Financial Group (NYSE:PFG) last issued 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 return on equity of 15.14% and a net margin of 4.56%. The business had revenue of $2.69 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.53 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.70 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Principal Financial Group, Inc. will post 7.6 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Principal Financial Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 28th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 12th were paid a dividend of $0.69 per share. This represents a $2.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.43%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 11th. This is an increase from Principal Financial Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.67. Principal Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 112.65%.

Principal Financial Group declared that its board has initiated a share repurchase program on Monday, February 12th that permits the company to buyback $1.50 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to buy up to 7.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

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.