Greenwood Capital Associates LLC Boosts Stock Position in Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG)

Greenwood Capital Associates LLC lifted its stake in shares of Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG) by 6.3% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 18,688 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,110 shares during the quarter. Greenwood Capital Associates LLC’s holdings in Principal Financial Group were worth $1,577,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Curio Wealth LLC purchased a new position in Principal Financial Group during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. BankPlus Trust Department purchased a new stake in shares of Principal Financial Group in the fourth quarter worth $33,000. Ameriflex Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Principal Financial Group during the 4th quarter valued at $37,000. Navigoe LLC purchased a new position in shares of Principal Financial Group during the 4th quarter valued at $37,000. Finally, Covestor Ltd lifted its stake in shares of Principal Financial Group by 144.3% during the 4th quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 540 shares of the company’s stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 319 shares in the last quarter. 75.08% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Principal Financial Group Stock Performance

NYSE:PFG opened at $76.49 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 0.29 and a quick ratio of 0.30. Principal Financial Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $68.39 and a 1 year high of $91.98. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $76.09 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $80.20. The company has a market cap of $17.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.45, a PEG ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 1.00.

Principal Financial Group (NYSE:PFG) last posted its earnings results on Monday, April 28th. The company reported $1.81 earnings per share 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 quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.65 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Principal Financial Group, Inc. will post 8.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Principal Financial Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed 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 a boost from Principal Financial Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.97%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 2nd. Principal Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 65.10%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have issued reports on PFG. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased 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. Piper Sandler upped their price objective 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 increased their target price on Principal Financial Group from $68.00 to $69.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 29th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Principal Financial Group from $67.00 to $71.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Monday, May 19th. Finally, UBS Group dropped 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. 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 assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $83.85.

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.