Caxton Associates LLP Makes New Investment in Principal Financial Group, Inc. $PFG

Key Points

• Caxton Associates LLP purchased 7,351 shares of Principal Financial Group (NYSE:PFG), valuing the stake at approximately $620,000.
• The company increased its quarterly dividend from $0.76 to $0.78 per share, representing a yield of 3.8%.
• Principal Financial Group reported $2.16 earnings per share for the last quarter, exceeding the consensus estimate of $1.97 by $0.19.

Caxton Associates LLP bought a new stake in shares of Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 7,351 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $620,000.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of PFG. Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in Principal Financial Group by 802.2% during the 1st quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 3,707,534 shares of the company's stock valued at $312,805,000 after purchasing an additional 3,296,608 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Principal Financial Group by 114.2% in the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 2,613,143 shares of the company's stock valued at $220,471,000 after buying an additional 1,393,008 shares in the last quarter. Nuveen LLC acquired a new position in shares of Principal Financial Group in the 1st quarter valued at $47,986,000. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Principal Financial Group by 443.6% in the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 645,431 shares of the company's stock worth $53,597,000 after purchasing an additional 526,701 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in shares of Principal Financial Group by 11,781.7% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 478,715 shares of the company's stock worth $40,389,000 after purchasing an additional 474,686 shares during the last quarter. 75.08% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Principal Financial Group Price Performance

Shares of PFG traded down $2.15 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $80.81. The company had a trading volume of 619,059 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,379,716. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $79.47 and its 200 day simple moving average is $78.89. Principal Financial Group, Inc. has a 1-year low of $68.39 and a 1-year high of $91.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a quick ratio of 0.30 and a current ratio of 0.29. The company has a market capitalization of $18.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.07, a P/E/G ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 1.03.

Principal Financial Group (NYSE:PFG - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Monday, July 28th. The company reported $2.16 EPS 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 in the prior year, the firm posted $1.63 EPS. Analysts expect that Principal Financial Group, Inc. 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, September 26th. Investors of record on Thursday, September 4th will be given a dividend of $0.78 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, September 4th. This represents a $3.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.9%. This is a boost from Principal Financial Group's previous quarterly dividend of $0.76. Principal Financial Group's dividend payout ratio is 62.78%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

PFG has been the topic of several analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on shares of Principal Financial Group from $73.00 to $72.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Principal Financial Group from $92.00 to $101.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Principal Financial Group from $76.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research note 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 company an "underweight" rating in a research report on Monday, August 18th. Finally, Piper Sandler raised 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 analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and an average price target of $86.90.

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.