DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale Purchases 5,057 Shares of Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG)

DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale raised its holdings in Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG - Free Report) by 7.1% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 76,615 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 5,057 shares during the quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale's holdings in Principal Financial Group were worth $6,290,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Principal Financial Group in the 4th quarter valued at $217,021,000. Deutsche Bank AG grew its stake in shares of Principal Financial Group by 73.5% in the 4th quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 1,482,053 shares of the company's stock valued at $114,726,000 after buying an additional 627,865 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake 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 valued at $40,389,000 after buying an additional 474,686 shares during the period. Conning Inc. grew its stake in shares of Principal Financial Group by 5,081.7% in the 1st quarter. Conning Inc. now owns 404,953 shares of the company's stock valued at $34,166,000 after buying an additional 397,138 shares during the period. Finally, Woodline Partners LP acquired a new stake in shares of Principal Financial Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $28,448,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.08% of the company's stock.

Principal Financial Group Price Performance

Shares of PFG stock traded down $1.57 on Tuesday, reaching $79.38. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,105,829 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,318,898. The company has a quick ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 0.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. Principal Financial Group, Inc. has a 12-month low of $68.39 and a 12-month high of $91.98. The company has a market capitalization of $17.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.88, a PEG ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 0.99. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $78.57 and its 200-day simple moving average is $79.78.

Principal Financial Group (NYSE:PFG - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 28th. The company reported $1.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates 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 prior year, the company posted $1.65 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict 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 was paid on Friday, June 27th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 2nd were paid a $0.76 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 2nd. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.83%. This is a boost from Principal Financial Group's previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. Principal Financial Group's payout ratio is presently 65.10%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have commented on PFG shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective 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. Barclays upped their target price on Principal Financial Group from $76.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a report on Monday, July 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Principal Financial Group from $92.00 to $101.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Piper Sandler upped their target price on Principal Financial Group from $88.00 to $89.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, July 3rd. Finally, Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "underweight" rating and issued a $75.00 target price (up from $71.00) on shares of Principal Financial Group in a report on Monday. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Principal Financial Group has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $84.08.

Principal Financial Group 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.