DOWLING & PARTN Has Positive Outlook of PFG FY2026 Earnings

Key Points

• DOWLING & PARTN raised its FY2026 EPS forecast for Principal Financial Group to $9.45 from $9.35, slightly above the current consensus estimate of $9.38 per share. The firm also projected EPS of $10.50 for FY2027 and $11.55 for FY2028.
• Recent quarterly results topped earnings expectations, with PFG reporting $2.07 EPS versus the $2.01 consensus, though revenue of $3.53 billion came in below the $4.11 billion estimate. The company posted a 16.25% return on equity and a 10.10% net margin.
• PFG continues to reward shareholders by raising its quarterly dividend to $0.82 per share from $0.80, translating to a 2.9% annualized yield. The stock also has seen mixed analyst sentiment, with a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $105.82.

Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:PFG - Free Report) - Equities research analysts at DOWLING & PARTN increased their FY2026 EPS estimates for Principal Financial Group in a research note issued to investors on Monday, July 13th. DOWLING & PARTN analyst J. Hurwitz now forecasts that the company will post earnings per share of $9.45 for the year, up from their previous forecast of $9.35. The consensus estimate for Principal Financial Group's current full-year earnings is $9.38 per share. DOWLING & PARTN also issued estimates for Principal Financial Group's FY2027 earnings at $10.50 EPS and FY2028 earnings at $11.55 EPS.

Principal Financial Group (NASDAQ:PFG - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The company reported $2.07 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.01 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $3.53 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.11 billion. Principal Financial Group had a return on equity of 16.25% and a net margin of 10.10%.During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.81 earnings per share.

PFG has been the subject of a number of other research reports. Weiss Ratings downgraded Principal Financial Group from a "buy (b)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. Raymond James Financial lowered shares of Principal Financial Group from a "strong-buy" rating to an "outperform" rating and raised their price target for the stock from $99.00 to $111.00 in a research report on Tuesday, May 19th. Piper Sandler boosted their price objective on shares of Principal Financial Group from $113.00 to $125.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 24th. Evercore set a $108.00 target price on shares of Principal Financial Group in a report on Monday, April 27th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on Principal Financial Group from $91.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $105.82.

Principal Financial Group Stock Performance

PFG opened at $112.92 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 0.27 and a quick ratio of 0.27. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $106.50 and a 200 day simple moving average of $97.21. Principal Financial Group has a 1 year low of $75.00 and a 1 year high of $114.90. The company has a market capitalization of $24.39 billion, a PE ratio of 16.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 0.88.

Principal Financial Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 26th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 1st were paid a dividend of $0.82 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 1st. This is a positive change from Principal Financial Group's previous quarterly dividend of $0.80. This represents a $3.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.9%. Principal Financial Group's payout ratio is presently 46.92%.

Insider Transactions at Principal Financial Group

In related news, insider Wee Yee Cheong sold 9,183 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $101.26, for a total value of $929,870.58. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 77,188 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,816,056.88. This represents a 10.63% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, General Counsel George Djurasovic sold 2,571 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $100.83, for a total transaction of $259,233.93. Following the completion of the sale, the general counsel owned 21,906 shares in the company, valued at $2,208,781.98. This represents a 10.50% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 28,317 shares of company stock valued at $2,884,902 in the last three months. Company insiders own 1.13% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Principal Financial Group

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Bank of America Corp DE lifted its stake in shares of Principal Financial Group by 9.6% in the second quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 12,370,852 shares of the company's stock worth $982,617,000 after acquiring an additional 1,083,991 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in shares of Principal Financial Group by 3.2% in the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,886,509 shares of the company's stock worth $350,187,000 after purchasing an additional 119,327 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Principal Financial Group by 23.2% in the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 3,376,797 shares of the company's stock valued at $279,970,000 after purchasing an additional 636,334 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Principal Financial Group during the fourth quarter worth $273,276,000. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased its position in shares of Principal Financial Group by 1.8% during the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 3,079,857 shares of the company's stock worth $271,674,000 after buying an additional 55,669 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.08% of the company's stock.

Principal Financial Group Company Profile

Principal Financial Group NASDAQ: PFG is a global financial services company headquartered in Des Moines, Iowa, that provides a range of retirement, investment and insurance solutions to individuals, employers and institutional clients. The firm's business is organized around retirement services, asset management, and insurance products designed to help clients plan, invest for, and protect income over the long term.

Principal's product and service offerings include retirement plan recordkeeping and administration for employer-sponsored plans, individual and group retirement annuities, life and disability insurance, employee benefits solutions, and wealth management services.

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