Alliancebernstein L.P. Has $21.20 Million Stock Position in Principal Financial Group, Inc. $PFG

Key Points

• Alliancebernstein L.P. increased its stake in Principal Financial Group by 4.8%, owning approximately 0.11% of the company, worth about $21.20 million.
• Principal Financial Group recently declared a quarterly dividend increase to $0.78 per share, up from $0.76, with a dividend yield of 3.9%.
• Several research analysts have raised their price targets for Principal Financial Group, with JPMorgan Chase increasing it from $92.00 to $101.00, indicating positive market sentiment.

Alliancebernstein L.P. raised its position in Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG - Free Report) by 4.8% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 251,296 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 11,521 shares during the period. Alliancebernstein L.P. owned about 0.11% of Principal Financial Group worth $21,202,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Tompkins Financial Corp acquired a new position in Principal Financial Group in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $55,000. Blackhawk Capital Partners LLC. acquired a new position in Principal Financial Group in the first quarter worth about $281,000. SG Americas Securities LLC acquired a new position in Principal Financial Group in the first quarter worth about $943,000. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. raised its position in Principal Financial Group by 2.6% in the first quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 526,649 shares of the company's stock worth $44,433,000 after purchasing an additional 13,483 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its position in Principal Financial Group by 802.2% in the first quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 3,707,534 shares of the company's stock worth $312,805,000 after purchasing an additional 3,296,608 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.08% of the company's stock.

Principal Financial Group Stock Performance

NYSE PFG opened at $80.07 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $17.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.99, a PEG ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 1.03. The company has a 50 day moving average of $79.35 and a 200-day moving average of $79.08. The company has a current ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. 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 posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, July 28th. The company reported $2.16 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 last year, the business earned $1.63 earnings per share. On average, equities 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 business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 26th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, September 4th will be paid a dividend of $0.78 per share. This represents a $3.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.9%. This is an increase from Principal Financial Group's previous quarterly dividend of $0.76. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, September 4th. Principal Financial Group's payout ratio is currently 62.78%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Principal Financial Group from $92.00 to $101.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of Principal Financial Group from $73.00 to $72.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 30th. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Principal Financial Group from $76.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research report on Monday, July 7th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of Principal Financial Group from $75.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research report on Monday, August 18th. Finally, Piper Sandler upped their target price on shares of Principal Financial Group from $88.00 to $89.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, July 3rd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Reduce" and a consensus price target of $86.90.

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.

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