Envestnet Asset Management Inc. Purchases 50,877 Shares of Principal Financial Group, Inc. $PFG

Key Points

• Envestnet Asset Management increased its Principal Financial Group stake by 15.5%, acquiring 50,877 additional shares to hold 378,972 shares valued at approximately $40.8 million. Institutional investors collectively own 75.08% of the company.
• Analysts maintain a consensus “Hold” rating with an average price target of $108.83, while PFG recently traded at $114.77. The company reported quarterly EPS of $2.50, exceeding estimates of $2.33.
• Principal Financial Group raised its quarterly dividend from $0.82 to $0.84 per share, equivalent to an annualized dividend of $3.36 and a yield of approximately 2.9%.

Envestnet Asset Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:PFG - Free Report) by 15.5% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 378,972 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 50,877 shares during the period. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. owned about 0.18% of Principal Financial Group worth $40,846,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Ancora Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Principal Financial Group during the 2nd quarter worth $27,000. Hilton Head Capital Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Principal Financial Group during the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. purchased a new position in Principal Financial Group in the first quarter valued at $27,000. MBM Wealth Consultants LLC purchased a new position in Principal Financial Group in the first quarter valued at $28,000. Finally, Bell Investment Advisors Inc acquired a new stake in Principal Financial Group in the second quarter valued at $38,000. 75.08% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have issued reports on the company. UBS Group lifted their price target on Principal Financial Group from $98.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, September 10th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on Principal Financial Group from $91.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, July 10th. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on Principal Financial Group from $107.00 to $112.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, July 6th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Principal Financial Group from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 12th. Finally, Piper Sandler increased their price target on shares of Principal Financial Group from $113.00 to $125.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 24th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $108.83.

Principal Financial Group Stock Performance

NASDAQ:PFG opened at $114.77 on Monday. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $113.52 and its 200 day moving average price is $105.14. Principal Financial Group, Inc. has a 1-year low of $77.90 and a 1-year high of $121.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 0.28 and a quick ratio of 0.28. The firm has a market cap of $24.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.04 and a beta of 0.86.

Principal Financial Group (NASDAQ:PFG - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The company reported $2.50 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.33 by $0.17. The company had revenue of $3.91 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.11 billion. Principal Financial Group had a net margin of 9.93% and a return on equity of 16.49%. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.16 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Principal Financial Group, Inc. will post 9.62 EPS for the current year.

Principal Financial Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 25th. Investors of record on Thursday, September 3rd were issued a dividend of $0.84 per share. This is an increase from Principal Financial Group's previous quarterly dividend of $0.82. This represents a $3.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, September 3rd. Principal Financial Group's dividend payout ratio is currently 47.73%.

Principal Financial Group Profile

Principal Financial Group, Inc is a global financial services company headquartered in Des Moines, Iowa. Founded in 1879, the company provides investment management, retirement, insurance and financial wellness solutions to businesses, individuals and institutional investors.

Principal offers employer-sponsored retirement plans, including defined contribution and defined benefit programs, as well as pension risk transfer solutions. Its insurance products and services include group benefits, individual life insurance and disability insurance.

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