Beacon Financial Group Reduces Position in Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG)

Beacon Financial Group trimmed its holdings in shares of Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG) by 30.3% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 2,725 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,184 shares during the quarter. Beacon Financial Group’s holdings in Principal Financial Group were worth $230,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of PFG. Curio Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Principal Financial Group during the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. BankPlus Trust Department purchased a new stake in shares of Principal Financial Group during the fourth quarter worth about $33,000. Navigoe LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Principal Financial Group during the fourth quarter worth about $37,000. Ameriflex Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Principal Financial Group during the fourth quarter worth about $37,000. Finally, Covestor Ltd increased its position in shares of Principal Financial Group by 144.3% during the fourth quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 540 shares of the company’s stock worth $42,000 after acquiring an additional 319 shares during the last quarter. 75.08% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. Piper Sandler lifted their price target on Principal Financial Group from $93.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Principal Financial Group from $68.00 to $69.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 29th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Principal Financial Group from $67.00 to $71.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Monday, May 19th. UBS Group decreased their price target on Principal Financial Group from $93.00 to $80.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 29th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on Principal Financial Group from $86.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Principal Financial Group presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $83.85.

Principal Financial Group Stock Performance

Shares of PFG stock opened at $76.97 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 0.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. The business has a 50 day moving average of $76.26 and a two-hundred day moving average of $80.37. Principal Financial Group, Inc. has a 52 week low of $68.39 and a 52 week high of $91.98. The company has a market cap of $17.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.52, a PEG ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 1.01.

Principal Financial Group (NYSE:PFG) last issued its earnings results on Monday, April 28th. The company reported $1.81 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.83 by ($0.02). Principal Financial Group had a net margin of 9.74% and a return on equity of 14.68%. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.65 earnings per share. As a group, analysts anticipate that Principal Financial Group, Inc. will post 8.5 EPS for the current year.

Principal Financial Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 27th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 2nd will be paid a $0.76 dividend. This is an increase from Principal Financial Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.95%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 2nd. Principal Financial Group’s payout ratio is presently 65.10%.

Principal Financial Group Company Profile

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.