Danske Bank A S Purchases 13,100 Shares of Principal Financial Group, Inc. $PFG

Key Points

• Danske Bank A S increased its stake in Principal Financial Group by 12.2% in Q4, purchasing 13,100 shares to hold 120,507 shares valued at about $10.63 million (roughly 0.05% of the company).
• Analysts' consensus rating is Hold with an average price target of $95.33, while PFG trades around $99.46 and has a 12‑month range of $75.00–$101.90.
• Principal raised its quarterly dividend to $0.82 (annualized $3.28) for a yield near 3.3%, with an ex‑dividend date of June 1.

Danske Bank A S raised its holdings in shares of Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:PFG - Free Report) by 12.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 120,507 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 13,100 shares during the period. Danske Bank A S owned about 0.05% of Principal Financial Group worth $10,630,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Principal Financial Group by 3.5% in the third quarter. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC now owns 3,444 shares of the company's stock worth $286,000 after purchasing an additional 118 shares during the last quarter. Mutual Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Principal Financial Group by 4.6% in the fourth quarter. Mutual Advisors LLC now owns 2,908 shares of the company's stock worth $257,000 after purchasing an additional 129 shares during the last quarter. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. boosted its holdings in Principal Financial Group by 22.3% in the third quarter. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. now owns 713 shares of the company's stock valued at $59,000 after acquiring an additional 130 shares in the last quarter. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC boosted its holdings in Principal Financial Group by 1.0% in the third quarter. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC now owns 13,800 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,144,000 after acquiring an additional 137 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Clearstead Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Principal Financial Group by 18.3% in the third quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC now owns 907 shares of the company's stock valued at $75,000 after acquiring an additional 140 shares in the last quarter. 75.08% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

PFG has been the topic of a number of research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated a "neutral" rating and set a $103.00 target price on shares of Principal Financial Group in a report on Monday, January 5th. Evercore set a $108.00 price objective on shares of Principal Financial Group in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Principal Financial Group from $93.00 to $95.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 3rd. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Principal Financial Group from $85.00 to $87.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a report on Friday, April 24th. Finally, Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Principal Financial Group from a "buy (b)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a report on Friday. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $95.33.

Principal Financial Group Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ PFG opened at $99.46 on Tuesday. Principal Financial Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $75.00 and a twelve month high of $101.90. The firm has a market cap of $21.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.23, a PEG ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a 50 day moving average of $92.37 and a 200 day moving average of $89.33. The company has a quick ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 0.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33.

Principal Financial Group (NASDAQ:PFG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The company reported $2.07 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.01 by $0.06. Principal Financial Group had a net margin of 10.10% and a return on equity of 16.25%. The company had revenue of $3.53 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.11 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.81 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that Principal Financial Group, Inc. will post 9.31 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Principal Financial Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 26th. Investors of record on Monday, June 1st will be issued a $0.82 dividend. This represents a $3.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.3%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 1st. This is an increase from Principal Financial Group's previous quarterly dividend of $0.80. Principal Financial Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 45.78%.

Insider Transactions at Principal Financial Group

In other Principal Financial Group news, General Counsel George Djurasovic sold 2,571 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $100.83, for a total value of $259,233.93. Following the completion of the transaction, the general counsel owned 21,906 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,208,781.98. The trade was a 10.50% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Wee Yee Cheong sold 9,183 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $101.26, for a total transaction of $929,870.58. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 77,188 shares in the company, valued at $7,816,056.88. This represents a 10.63% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last three months, insiders sold 17,572 shares of company stock valued at $1,776,769. 1.13% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Principal Financial Group Company 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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.