Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Hold” by Brokerages

Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG) has been assigned a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the fourteen brokerages that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price objective among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $86.57.

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on PFG. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Principal Financial Group from $69.00 to $74.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. BMO Capital Markets started coverage on shares of Principal Financial Group in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. They set a “market perform” rating and a $93.00 price target on the stock. Piper Sandler boosted their price target on shares of Principal Financial Group from $93.00 to $95.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Barclays raised their price objective on Principal Financial Group from $77.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and issued a $91.00 target price on shares of Principal Financial Group in a research note on Thursday, January 16th.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Tompkins Financial Corp bought a new stake in Principal Financial Group during the 1st quarter worth about $55,000. GoalVest Advisory LLC raised its holdings in Principal Financial Group by 17.6% during the first quarter. GoalVest Advisory LLC now owns 21,498 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,814,000 after acquiring an additional 3,220 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in Principal Financial Group by 11,781.7% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 478,715 shares of the company’s stock valued at $40,389,000 after purchasing an additional 474,686 shares during the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its stake in Principal Financial Group by 470.1% in the first quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 1,545 shares of the company’s stock valued at $130,000 after purchasing an additional 1,274 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Central Pacific Bank Trust Division bought a new position in Principal Financial Group in the first quarter valued at approximately $279,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.08% of the company’s stock.

Principal Financial Group Trading Down 1.8 %

NYSE PFG opened at $71.65 on Thursday. Principal Financial Group has a 12 month low of $68.70 and a 12 month high of $91.98. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $83.90 and a 200 day simple moving average of $83.57. The company has a current ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. The company has a market capitalization of $16.16 billion, a PE ratio of 10.73, a P/E/G ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 1.01.

Principal Financial Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 12th were paid a dividend of $0.75 per share. This is a boost from Principal Financial Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.73. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.19%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 12th. Principal Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 44.91%.

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.