Caxton Associates LLP Purchases 8,230 Shares of Principal Financial Group, Inc. $PFG

Caxton Associates LLP raised its position in shares of Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG) by 112.0% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 15,581 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 8,230 shares during the quarter. Caxton Associates LLP’s holdings in Principal Financial Group were worth $1,238,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Principal Financial Group by 0.4% during the 2nd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 27,345,064 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,172,018,000 after acquiring an additional 97,149 shares during the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE raised its stake in Principal Financial Group by 9.6% during the second quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 12,370,852 shares of the company’s stock valued at $982,617,000 after purchasing an additional 1,083,991 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in Principal Financial Group during the second quarter valued at $227,098,000. Invesco Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Principal Financial Group by 5.4% in the 2nd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 2,740,463 shares of the company’s stock worth $217,675,000 after buying an additional 139,953 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Principal Financial Group by 114.2% in the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 2,613,143 shares of the company’s stock worth $220,471,000 after buying an additional 1,393,008 shares during the last quarter. 75.08% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Principal Financial Group Stock Performance

Shares of Principal Financial Group stock opened at $90.63 on Tuesday. 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’s fifty day moving average is $83.39 and its two-hundred day moving average is $80.83. Principal Financial Group, Inc. has a 52 week low of $68.39 and a 52 week high of $92.10. The company has a market capitalization of $20.19 billion, a PE ratio of 13.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 0.89.

Principal Financial Group (NYSE:PFG) last issued its earnings results on Monday, October 27th. The company reported $2.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.20 by $0.12. Principal Financial Group had a net margin of 9.74% and a return on equity of 14.68%. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.05 earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that Principal Financial Group, Inc. will post 8.5 earnings per share for the current year.

Principal Financial Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 19th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, December 3rd will be given a dividend of $0.79 per share. This represents a $3.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.5%. This is a boost from Principal Financial Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.78. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, December 3rd. Principal Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio is 46.00%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

PFG has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on shares of Principal Financial Group from $90.00 to $91.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 30th. Piper Sandler set a $94.00 price objective on Principal Financial Group and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 7th. Morgan Stanley set a $93.00 target price on Principal Financial Group in a report on Monday. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Principal Financial Group from $73.00 to $74.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 29th. Finally, Evercore ISI raised their price target on Principal Financial Group from $92.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 9th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $90.10.

Insider Buying and Selling at Principal Financial Group

In related news, EVP Wee Yee Cheong sold 1,887 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.04, for a total value of $160,470.48. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 81,421 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,924,041.84. The trade was a 2.27% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 1.08% of the company’s stock.

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.