Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG) Receives $83.85 Average Target Price from Analysts

Shares of Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG) have received an average rating of “Hold” from the thirteen research firms that are covering the company, Marketbeat reports. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $83.85.

A number of brokerages have commented on PFG. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on shares of Principal Financial Group from $86.00 to $87.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Principal Financial Group from $68.00 to $69.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 29th. UBS Group dropped their price objective on shares of Principal Financial Group from $93.00 to $80.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 29th. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of Principal Financial Group from $80.00 to $76.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 11th. Finally, Piper Sandler upped their price objective on shares of Principal Financial Group from $93.00 to $95.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd.

Principal Financial Group Stock Performance

Shares of PFG opened at $75.97 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. The stock has a market capitalization of $17.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 1.00. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $76.49 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $79.76. Principal Financial Group has a 12 month low of $68.39 and a 12 month high of $91.98.

Principal Financial Group (NYSE:PFG) last issued its quarterly 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 prior year, the firm posted $1.65 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Principal Financial Group will post 8.5 EPS for the current year.

Principal Financial Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 27th. Investors of record on Monday, June 2nd will be issued a $0.76 dividend. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.00%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 2nd. This is a positive change from Principal Financial Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. Principal Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 65.10%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Principal Financial Group

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Principal Financial Group by 7.6% in the 1st quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 1,889 shares of the company’s stock worth $159,000 after acquiring an additional 134 shares during the last quarter. Federation des caisses Desjardins du Quebec raised its holdings in shares of Principal Financial Group by 0.5% in the 1st quarter. Federation des caisses Desjardins du Quebec now owns 27,536 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,323,000 after acquiring an additional 139 shares during the last quarter. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. raised its holdings in shares of Principal Financial Group by 3.9% in the 1st quarter. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. now owns 3,826 shares of the company’s stock worth $323,000 after acquiring an additional 144 shares during the last quarter. Raiffeisen Bank International AG raised its holdings in shares of Principal Financial Group by 12.6% in the 1st quarter. Raiffeisen Bank International AG now owns 1,380 shares of the company’s stock worth $115,000 after acquiring an additional 154 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hartford Funds Management Co LLC raised its holdings in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 161 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.08% of the company’s stock.

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.