Cerity Partners LLC Has $2.94 Million Holdings in Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG)

Cerity Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG - Free Report) by 19.2% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 34,782 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 5,603 shares during the quarter. Cerity Partners LLC's holdings in Principal Financial Group were worth $2,935,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. HighTower Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Principal Financial Group by 8.1% in the fourth quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 14,451 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,119,000 after buying an additional 1,080 shares during the last quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC boosted its position in Principal Financial Group by 2.1% during the 4th quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 77,668 shares of the company's stock worth $6,012,000 after acquiring an additional 1,620 shares during the last quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. lifted its position in shares of Principal Financial Group by 17.6% in the fourth quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 1,838 shares of the company's stock worth $142,000 after purchasing an additional 275 shares in the last quarter. Vinva Investment Management Ltd boosted its holdings in shares of Principal Financial Group by 3.4% in the 4th quarter. Vinva Investment Management Ltd now owns 7,812 shares of the company's stock valued at $603,000 after buying an additional 258 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Blueshift Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Principal Financial Group by 76.2% in the 4th quarter. Blueshift Asset Management LLC now owns 7,152 shares of the company's stock valued at $554,000 after buying an additional 3,093 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 75.08% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have weighed in on PFG. Morgan Stanley reiterated an "underweight" rating and set a $75.00 price objective (up previously from $71.00) on shares of Principal Financial Group in a research report on Monday, July 14th. Barclays lifted their price objective on Principal Financial Group from $76.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research note on Monday, July 7th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on Principal Financial Group from $87.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Principal Financial Group from $69.00 to $73.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a report on Thursday, July 10th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Principal Financial Group from $92.00 to $101.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $84.82.

Principal Financial Group Stock Performance

PFG stock traded up $1.46 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $80.20. The stock had a trading volume of 981,072 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,317,785. Principal Financial Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $68.39 and a 52-week high of $91.98. 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 stock has a market cap of $17.98 billion, a PE ratio of 12.01, a P/E/G ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 0.99. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $78.76 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $79.86.

Principal Financial Group (NYSE:PFG - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, April 28th. The company reported $1.81 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.83 by ($0.02). 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 business posted $1.65 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Principal Financial Group, Inc. will post 8.5 EPS for the current year.

Principal Financial Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 27th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 2nd were issued a dividend of $0.76 per share. This is a boost from Principal Financial Group's previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 2nd. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.79%. Principal Financial Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 65.10%.

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.