Forsta AP Fonden Buys 28,500 Shares of Principal Financial Group, Inc. $PFG

Forsta AP Fonden boosted its position in shares of Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG) by 22.8% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 153,500 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 28,500 shares during the period. Forsta AP Fonden owned 0.07% of Principal Financial Group worth $12,193,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Oliver Lagore Vanvalin Investment Group bought a new stake in shares of Principal Financial Group during the 2nd quarter valued at $25,000. American National Bank & Trust purchased a new stake in Principal Financial Group in the 2nd quarter worth $28,000. Curio Wealth LLC raised its holdings in Principal Financial Group by 37,800.0% during the second quarter. Curio Wealth LLC now owns 379 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 378 shares during the period. Private Wealth Asset Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Principal Financial Group by 163.4% in the second quarter. Private Wealth Asset Management LLC now owns 403 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 250 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Zions Bancorporation National Association UT bought a new position in shares of Principal Financial Group in the first quarter worth about $34,000. 75.08% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Principal Financial Group Trading Up 1.0%

Shares of PFG opened at $85.26 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $18.99 billion, a PE ratio of 12.76, a P/E/G ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 1.02. The company’s fifty day moving average is $81.67 and its 200 day moving average is $79.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a quick ratio of 0.30 and a current ratio of 0.29. Principal Financial Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $68.39 and a fifty-two week high of $90.31.

Principal Financial Group (NYSE:PFG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, October 27th. The company reported $2.32 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.20 by $0.12. Principal Financial Group had a return on equity of 14.68% and a net margin of 9.74%.During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.05 EPS. Sell-side 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, December 19th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, December 3rd will be given a dividend of $0.79 per share. This is a positive change from Principal Financial Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.78. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, December 3rd. This represents a $3.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.7%. Principal Financial Group’s payout ratio is 46.00%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently commented on PFG. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on Principal Financial Group from $90.00 to $91.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 30th. 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. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Principal Financial Group from $85.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 29th. Evercore ISI lifted their price target on shares of Principal Financial Group from $92.00 to $94.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a report on Thursday, October 9th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Principal Financial Group from $73.00 to $74.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 29th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $88.90.

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.