GSA Capital Partners LLP Makes New $1.32 Million Investment in Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG)

Key Points

• GSA Capital Partners LLP acquired 15,633 shares of Principal Financial Group, valued at approximately $1.32 million, in the first quarter of the year.
• Principal Financial Group reported $2.16 earnings per share for the last quarter, surpassing the consensus estimate of $1.97, and plans to increase its quarterly dividend to $0.78 per share.
• Multiple analysts have revised their price targets for Principal Financial Group, with the current average target sitting at $86.90 and a consensus rating of "Hold."

GSA Capital Partners LLP purchased a new position in shares of Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 15,633 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,319,000.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Principal Financial Group by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,466,587 shares of the company's stock worth $422,074,000 after buying an additional 52,410 shares during the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Principal Financial Group by 802.2% in the first 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 in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp raised its stake in shares of Principal Financial Group by 9.8% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 3,662,918 shares of the company's stock valued at $283,546,000 after purchasing an additional 326,604 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its stake in shares of Principal Financial Group by 12.6% in the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 1,877,246 shares of the company's stock valued at $145,318,000 after purchasing an additional 209,885 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Deutsche Bank AG raised its stake in shares of Principal Financial Group by 73.5% in the fourth quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 1,482,053 shares of the company's stock valued at $114,726,000 after purchasing an additional 627,865 shares in the last quarter. 75.08% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently commented on PFG shares. Barclays upped their target price on Principal Financial Group from $76.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research note on Monday, July 7th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an "underweight" rating and set a $75.00 price objective (up from $71.00) on shares of Principal Financial Group in a research note on Monday, July 14th. UBS Group increased their price objective on Principal Financial Group from $85.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on Principal Financial Group from $73.00 to $72.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Principal Financial Group from $92.00 to $101.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $86.90.

Principal Financial Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:PFG traded down $2.30 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $75.53. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,753,362 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,429,678. Principal Financial Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $68.39 and a fifty-two week high of $91.97. The company has a market capitalization of $16.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.31, a P/E/G ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 0.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 0.29 and a quick ratio of 0.30. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $78.57 and its 200-day simple moving average is $79.92.

Principal Financial Group (NYSE:PFG - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Monday, July 28th. The company reported $2.16 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.97 by $0.19. Principal Financial Group had a return on equity of 14.68% and a net margin of 9.74%. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.63 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Principal Financial Group, Inc. will post 8.5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Principal Financial Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 26th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, September 4th will be paid a $0.78 dividend. This is a positive change from Principal Financial Group's previous quarterly dividend of $0.76. This represents a $3.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.1%. Principal Financial Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 62.78%.

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.