Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC Takes Position in Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG)

Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 5,014 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $394,000.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in Principal Financial Group by 9,002.1% during the fourth quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 163,383 shares of the company’s stock valued at $12,853,000 after buying an additional 161,588 shares in the last quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc. boosted its stake in Principal Financial Group by 36.0% during the fourth quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc. now owns 756 shares of the company’s stock valued at $59,000 after buying an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Principal Financial Group by 3.4% during the fourth quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 86,828 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,831,000 after buying an additional 2,817 shares in the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in Principal Financial Group by 13.0% during the fourth quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 81,924 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,445,000 after buying an additional 9,429 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Principal Financial Group by 9.9% during the fourth quarter. Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 6,069 shares of the company’s stock valued at $477,000 after buying an additional 547 shares in the last quarter. 75.08% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Principal Financial Group Stock Up 0.3 %

Shares of PFG stock opened at $78.48 on Thursday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $81.57 and its 200 day simple moving average is $76.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a quick ratio of 0.30 and a current ratio of 0.30. Principal Financial Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $65.17 and a twelve month high of $86.79. The company has a market capitalization of $18.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.03, a PEG ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 1.25.

Principal Financial Group (NYSE:PFG) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 12th. The company reported $1.83 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.70 by $0.13. Principal Financial Group had a return on equity of 15.14% and a net margin of 4.56%. The business had revenue of $2.69 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.53 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.70 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Principal Financial Group, Inc. will post 7.6 EPS for the current year.

Principal Financial Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 28th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 12th were paid a $0.69 dividend. This represents a $2.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.52%. This is an increase from Principal Financial Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.67. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 11th. Principal Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 112.65%.

Principal Financial Group declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback program on Monday, February 12th that allows the company to repurchase $1.50 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to repurchase up to 7.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are generally an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Evercore ISI raised their target price on Principal Financial Group from $84.00 to $86.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on Principal Financial Group from $81.00 to $82.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday. Piper Sandler increased their price target on Principal Financial Group from $85.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, April 5th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Principal Financial Group from $86.00 to $91.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on Principal Financial Group from $85.00 to $89.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and ten have given a hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $80.64.

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.