Principal Financial Group, Inc. $PFG Position Raised by Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd.

Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its position in shares of Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:PFG) by 5.0% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 455,175 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 21,768 shares during the quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd.’s holdings in Principal Financial Group were worth $40,702,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in PFG. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. bought a new stake in Principal Financial Group during the fourth quarter worth approximately $26,000. Quest 10 Wealth Builders Inc. raised its holdings in Principal Financial Group by 343.6% during the fourth quarter. Quest 10 Wealth Builders Inc. now owns 346 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 268 shares in the last quarter. FWL Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Principal Financial Group during the third quarter worth approximately $32,000. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. raised its holdings in Principal Financial Group by 66.5% during the fourth quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. now owns 398 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 159 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Rialto Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in Principal Financial Group by 3,754.5% during the fourth quarter. Rialto Wealth Management LLC now owns 424 shares of the company’s stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 413 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 75.08% of the company’s stock.

Principal Financial Group Price Performance

NASDAQ PFG opened at $100.50 on Friday. Principal Financial Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $75.00 and a 1 year high of $103.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a current ratio of 0.27. The stock has a market capitalization of $21.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.38, a P/E/G ratio of 0.95 and a beta of 0.89. The business’s fifty day moving average is $92.76 and its two-hundred day moving average is $89.78.

Principal Financial Group (NASDAQ:PFG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The company reported $2.07 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.01 by $0.06. Principal Financial Group had a net margin of 10.10% and a return on equity of 16.25%. The firm had revenue of $3.53 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.11 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.81 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Principal Financial Group, Inc. will post 9.31 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Principal Financial Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 26th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 1st will be given a dividend of $0.82 per share. This represents a $3.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.3%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 1st. This is a positive change from Principal Financial Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.80. Principal Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 45.78%.

Insider Activity at Principal Financial Group

In other news, General Counsel George Djurasovic sold 2,571 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $100.83, for a total transaction of $259,233.93. Following the transaction, the general counsel directly owned 21,906 shares in the company, valued at $2,208,781.98. The trade was a 10.50% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Wee Yee Cheong sold 9,183 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $101.26, for a total transaction of $929,870.58. Following the transaction, the insider owned 77,188 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,816,056.88. This represents a 10.63% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 17,572 shares of company stock worth $1,776,769. Corporate insiders own 1.13% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Bank of America dropped their target price on Principal Financial Group from $96.00 to $92.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 14th. Barclays upped their price target on Principal Financial Group from $85.00 to $87.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Friday, April 24th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on Principal Financial Group from $91.00 to $87.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 10th. Evercore set a $108.00 price target on Principal Financial Group in a report on Monday, April 27th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reaffirmed a “hold” rating and issued a $92.00 price target on shares of Principal Financial Group in a report on Thursday, March 26th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Principal Financial Group currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $95.33.

Principal Financial Group Company Profile

Principal Financial Group (NASDAQ: PFG) is a global financial services company headquartered in Des Moines, Iowa, that provides a range of retirement, investment and insurance solutions to individuals, employers and institutional clients. The firm’s business is organized around retirement services, asset management, and insurance products designed to help clients plan, invest for, and protect income over the long term.

Principal’s product and service offerings include retirement plan recordkeeping and administration for employer-sponsored plans, individual and group retirement annuities, life and disability insurance, employee benefits solutions, and wealth management services.