503,256 Shares in Principal Financial Group, Inc. $PFG Acquired by Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd.

Key Points

• Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management acquired 503,256 Principal Financial Group shares worth approximately $54.2 million, giving it a 0.24% stake. Institutional investors collectively own 75.08% of the company.
• Analysts maintain a mixed outlook, with an overall “Hold” rating and an average price target of $106.67; recent targets range from $92 to $121.
• Principal Financial Group reported quarterly EPS of $2.50, beating estimates of $2.33, and raised its quarterly dividend to $0.84, equivalent to a 3.0% annual yield.

Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. bought a new position in Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:PFG - Free Report) during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 503,256 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $54,241,000. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. owned about 0.24% of Principal Financial Group as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. DV Equities LLC purchased a new position in Principal Financial Group during the fourth quarter worth approximately $25,000. Hilton Head Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Principal Financial Group during the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Principal Financial Group during the 1st quarter worth $27,000. MBM Wealth Consultants LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Principal Financial Group during the 1st quarter worth $28,000. Finally, Quest 10 Wealth Builders Inc. raised its position in shares of Principal Financial Group by 343.6% in the 4th quarter. Quest 10 Wealth Builders Inc. now owns 346 shares of the company's stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 268 shares during the period. 75.08% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Weiss Ratings upgraded Principal Financial Group from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Principal Financial Group from $106.00 to $107.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, August 3rd. Barclays lifted their price objective on Principal Financial Group from $87.00 to $92.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 7th. Raymond James Financial reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $121.00 target price on shares of Principal Financial Group in a report on Monday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of Principal Financial Group from $114.00 to $113.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $106.67.

Principal Financial Group Stock Down 1.3%

Shares of Principal Financial Group stock opened at $111.64 on Thursday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $111.66 and a 200 day moving average price of $101.30. The company has a current ratio of 0.28, a quick ratio of 0.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. Principal Financial Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $77.34 and a twelve month high of $116.61. The stock has a market cap of $23.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.86, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.03 and a beta of 0.88.

Principal Financial Group (NASDAQ:PFG - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, July 27th. The company reported $2.50 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.33 by $0.17. Principal Financial Group had a return on equity of 16.49% and a net margin of 9.93%.The company had revenue of $3.99 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.11 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.16 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that Principal Financial Group, Inc. will post 9.57 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Principal Financial Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 25th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, September 3rd will be paid a $0.84 dividend. This represents a $3.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.0%. This is an increase from Principal Financial Group's previous quarterly dividend of $0.82. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, September 3rd. Principal Financial Group's payout ratio is 46.59%.

Principal Financial Group 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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