Avanza Fonder AB Trims Holdings in Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG)

Avanza Fonder AB cut its holdings in Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG) by 33.1% during the first quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 14,358 shares of the company’s stock after selling 7,119 shares during the quarter. Avanza Fonder AB’s holdings in Principal Financial Group were worth $1,238,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of PFG. Leavell Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in Principal Financial Group by 5.4% in the 4th quarter. Leavell Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,693 shares of the company’s stock worth $208,000 after purchasing an additional 138 shares in the last quarter. Hartford Funds Management Co LLC boosted its stake in Principal Financial Group by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. Hartford Funds Management Co LLC now owns 11,241 shares of the company’s stock worth $870,000 after purchasing an additional 161 shares in the last quarter. Argent Trust Co boosted its stake in Principal Financial Group by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. Argent Trust Co now owns 29,345 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,272,000 after purchasing an additional 161 shares in the last quarter. WFA Asset Management Corp boosted its stake in Principal Financial Group by 32.3% in the 1st quarter. WFA Asset Management Corp now owns 684 shares of the company’s stock worth $59,000 after purchasing an additional 167 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sanctuary Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Principal Financial Group by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 25,107 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,097,000 after purchasing an additional 175 shares in the last quarter. 75.08% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Principal Financial Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:PFG opened at $76.49 on Thursday. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $17.15 billion, a PE ratio of 11.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 1.00. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $76.09 and its 200-day moving average price is $80.20. Principal Financial Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $68.39 and a twelve month high of $91.98.

Principal Financial Group (NYSE:PFG) last announced its earnings results on Monday, April 28th. The company reported $1.81 EPS 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 firm earned $1.65 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Principal Financial Group, Inc. will post 8.5 EPS for the current year.

Principal Financial Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 27th. Investors of record on Monday, June 2nd will be given a dividend of $0.76 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 2nd. This is an increase from Principal Financial Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.97%. Principal Financial Group’s payout ratio is 65.10%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on PFG shares. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Principal Financial Group from $68.00 to $69.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 29th. Piper Sandler upped their price target on shares of Principal Financial Group from $93.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Principal Financial Group from $67.00 to $71.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Monday, May 19th. Barclays lowered their target price on shares of Principal Financial Group from $80.00 to $76.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Finally, UBS Group lowered their target price on shares of Principal Financial Group from $93.00 to $80.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 29th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $83.85.

Principal Financial Group Company 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.