Freestone Capital Holdings LLC Increases Stock Holdings in Principal Financial Group, Inc. $PFG

Freestone Capital Holdings LLC boosted its position in Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG) by 1.5% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 35,890 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 534 shares during the period. Freestone Capital Holdings LLC’s holdings in Principal Financial Group were worth $3,028,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of PFG. von Borstel & Associates Inc. purchased a new position in Principal Financial Group in the first quarter worth about $32,000. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT purchased a new position in Principal Financial Group in the first quarter worth about $34,000. Navigoe LLC purchased a new position in Principal Financial Group in the fourth quarter worth about $37,000. Ameriflex Group Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Principal Financial Group during the 4th quarter valued at about $37,000. Finally, GKV Capital Management Co. Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Principal Financial Group during the 1st quarter valued at about $45,000. 75.08% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price objective on Principal Financial Group from $90.00 to $88.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, August 4th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Principal Financial Group from $85.00 to $87.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 29th. Piper Sandler lifted their price objective on Principal Financial Group from $88.00 to $89.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 3rd. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “underweight” rating and set a $75.00 price objective (up from $71.00) on shares of Principal Financial Group in a research report on Monday, July 14th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on Principal Financial Group from $73.00 to $72.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 30th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $86.70.

Principal Financial Group Stock Down 0.6%

Shares of PFG opened at $77.64 on Monday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $78.47 and its 200 day moving average is $79.52. The company has a market capitalization of $17.30 billion, a PE ratio of 11.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 1.00. Principal Financial Group, Inc. has a 12-month low of $68.39 and a 12-month high of $91.97. The company has a current ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36.

Principal Financial Group (NYSE:PFG) last issued its earnings results on Monday, July 28th. The company reported $2.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.97 by $0.19. Principal Financial Group had a return on equity of 14.68% and a net margin of 9.74%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.63 EPS. Research analysts expect 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 announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 26th. Investors of record on Thursday, September 4th will be paid a dividend of $0.78 per share. This is a boost from Principal Financial Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.76. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, September 4th. This represents a $3.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.0%. Principal Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio is 62.78%.

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.