National Pension Service Purchases 2,576 Shares of Principal Financial Group, Inc. $PFG

National Pension Service increased its position in shares of Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG) by 0.7% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 382,437 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,576 shares during the period. National Pension Service’s holdings in Principal Financial Group were worth $30,377,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of PFG. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Principal Financial Group by 7.6% in the 1st quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 1,889 shares of the company’s stock worth $159,000 after buying an additional 134 shares during the period. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC lifted its position in shares of Principal Financial Group by 2.5% in the second quarter. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC now owns 5,550 shares of the company’s stock valued at $449,000 after acquiring an additional 137 shares in the last quarter. Federation des caisses Desjardins du Quebec boosted its stake in shares of Principal Financial Group by 0.5% in the first quarter. Federation des caisses Desjardins du Quebec now owns 27,536 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,323,000 after acquiring an additional 139 shares during the period. Raiffeisen Bank International AG grew its position in shares of Principal Financial Group by 12.6% during the first quarter. Raiffeisen Bank International AG now owns 1,380 shares of the company’s stock worth $115,000 after purchasing an additional 154 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sagespring Wealth Partners LLC raised its stake in Principal Financial Group by 4.0% during the 2nd quarter. Sagespring Wealth Partners LLC now owns 4,035 shares of the company’s stock valued at $321,000 after purchasing an additional 154 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.08% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have weighed in on the company. UBS Group upped their price target on Principal Financial Group from $85.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 29th. Morgan Stanley raised shares of Principal Financial Group from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $80.00 to $81.00 in a report on Thursday, October 23rd. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Principal Financial Group from $80.00 to $83.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Principal Financial Group from $73.00 to $74.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 29th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on shares of Principal Financial Group from $90.00 to $91.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 30th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $88.90.

Principal Financial Group Price Performance

Principal Financial Group stock opened at $84.47 on Friday. Principal Financial Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $68.39 and a 52-week high of $90.31. 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 firm’s fifty day moving average is $81.83 and its 200 day moving average is $79.70. The company has a market cap of $18.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.65, a PEG ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 1.02.

Principal Financial Group (NYSE:PFG) last posted its earnings results on Monday, October 27th. The company reported $2.32 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.20 by $0.12. Principal Financial Group had a net margin of 9.74% and a return on equity of 14.68%. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.05 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Principal Financial Group, Inc. will post 8.5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Principal Financial Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 19th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, December 3rd will be paid a dividend of $0.79 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, December 3rd. This is an increase from Principal Financial Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.78. This represents a $3.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.7%. Principal Financial Group’s payout ratio is presently 46.00%.

Insider Transactions at Principal Financial Group

In other news, EVP Wee Yee Cheong sold 1,887 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.04, for a total value of $160,470.48. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 81,421 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,924,041.84. This trade represents a 2.27% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 1.08% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Principal Financial Group 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.