Aigen Investment Management LP Acquires New Position in Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG)

Key Points

• Aigen Investment Management LP acquired 5,163 shares of Principal Financial Group (NYSE:PFG) for approximately $436,000 in the first quarter, indicating growing interest from institutional investors in the company.
• Principal Financial Group recently increased its quarterly dividend to $0.78 per share, up from the previous $0.76, reflecting financial growth with a dividend yield of 4.0%.
• For the latest quarter, the company reported earnings per share of $2.16, surpassing analysts' estimates by $0.19, and analysts expect an annual EPS of 8.5 for the current year.

Aigen Investment Management LP acquired a new position in shares of Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 5,163 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $436,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Virtu Financial LLC lifted its position in Principal Financial Group by 164.3% during the first quarter. Virtu Financial LLC now owns 9,251 shares of the company's stock valued at $780,000 after purchasing an additional 5,751 shares during the period. Entropy Technologies LP lifted its position in Principal Financial Group by 51.1% during the first quarter. Entropy Technologies LP now owns 37,793 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,189,000 after purchasing an additional 12,779 shares during the period. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC lifted its position in Principal Financial Group by 10.7% during the first quarter. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC now owns 9,617 shares of the company's stock valued at $811,000 after purchasing an additional 928 shares during the period. Townsquare Capital LLC lifted its position in Principal Financial Group by 39.0% during the first quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC now owns 8,956 shares of the company's stock valued at $756,000 after purchasing an additional 2,511 shares during the period. Finally, Donoghue Forlines LLC acquired a new position in Principal Financial Group during the first quarter valued at $1,496,000. 75.08% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their target price on shares of Principal Financial Group from $90.00 to $88.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, August 4th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "underweight" rating and issued a $75.00 price objective (up previously from $71.00) on shares of Principal Financial Group in a report on Monday, July 14th. Piper Sandler lifted their price objective on shares of Principal Financial Group from $88.00 to $89.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, July 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of Principal Financial Group from $73.00 to $72.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Principal Financial Group from $85.00 to $87.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 29th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Principal Financial Group currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $86.70.

Principal Financial Group Price Performance

Shares of PFG stock traded down $0.25 on Thursday, reaching $78.09. 1,047,840 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,420,830. The company has a market cap of $17.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.69, a P/E/G ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 1.00. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $78.46 and a 200 day moving average price of $79.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a quick ratio of 0.30 and a current ratio of 0.29. Principal Financial Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $68.39 and a 1 year high of $91.97.

Principal Financial Group (NYSE:PFG - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Monday, July 28th. The company reported $2.16 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.97 by $0.19. Principal Financial Group had a net margin of 9.74% and a return on equity of 14.68%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.63 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that Principal Financial Group, Inc. will post 8.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Principal Financial Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 26th. Investors of record on Thursday, September 4th will be paid a dividend of $0.78 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, September 4th. This represents a $3.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.0%. This is a boost from Principal Financial Group's previous quarterly dividend of $0.76. Principal Financial Group's dividend payout ratio is currently 62.78%.

About Principal Financial Group

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.