Iowa State Bank Trims Position in Principal Financial Group, Inc. $PFG

Iowa State Bank lessened its position in shares of Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG) by 4.3% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 5,768 shares of the company’s stock after selling 261 shares during the quarter. Iowa State Bank’s holdings in Principal Financial Group were worth $458,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Oliver Lagore Vanvalin Investment Group purchased a new stake in Principal Financial Group in the second quarter worth about $25,000. American National Bank & Trust purchased a new stake in Principal Financial Group in the second quarter worth about $28,000. von Borstel & Associates Inc. purchased a new stake in Principal Financial Group in the first quarter worth about $32,000. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT purchased a new stake in Principal Financial Group in the first quarter worth about $34,000. Finally, GKV Capital Management Co. Inc. purchased a new stake in Principal Financial Group in the first quarter worth about $45,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.08% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have commented on the company. Piper Sandler upped their price target on Principal Financial Group from $88.00 to $89.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on Principal Financial Group from $73.00 to $72.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 30th. UBS Group upped their price objective on Principal Financial Group from $85.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 29th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price objective on Principal Financial Group from $90.00 to $88.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, August 4th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on Principal Financial Group from $75.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Monday, August 18th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Principal Financial Group currently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average target price of $86.90.

Principal Financial Group Price Performance

Shares of Principal Financial Group stock opened at $84.24 on Monday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $79.95 and a 200 day moving average of $78.69. Principal Financial Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $68.39 and a 12 month high of $91.97. The firm has a market cap of $18.77 billion, a PE ratio of 12.61, a PEG ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 1.03. 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 announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 28th. The company reported $2.16 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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 last year, the firm earned $1.63 earnings per share. On average, research analysts expect that Principal Financial Group, Inc. will post 8.5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Principal Financial Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 26th. Investors of record on Thursday, September 4th were paid a dividend of $0.78 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, September 4th. This is a boost from Principal Financial Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.76. This represents a $3.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.7%. Principal Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 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.