IFM Investors Pty Ltd Acquires 4,760 Shares of Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG)

IFM Investors Pty Ltd grew its holdings in Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG - Free Report) by 10.4% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 50,574 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 4,760 shares during the period. IFM Investors Pty Ltd's holdings in Principal Financial Group were worth $4,344,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Principal Financial Group by 1.9% in the 1st quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 14,644 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,236,000 after acquiring an additional 274 shares during the period. Conning Inc. grew its holdings in Principal Financial Group by 5,081.7% during the 1st quarter. Conning Inc. now owns 404,953 shares of the company's stock valued at $34,166,000 after purchasing an additional 397,138 shares in the last quarter. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC grew its holdings in Principal Financial Group by 15.7% during the 1st quarter. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC now owns 3,492 shares of the company's stock valued at $295,000 after purchasing an additional 475 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in Principal Financial Group by 1.1% during the 1st quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 229,603 shares of the company's stock valued at $19,372,000 after purchasing an additional 2,513 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Teacher Retirement System of Texas acquired a new stake in Principal Financial Group during the 1st quarter valued at $16,866,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.08% of the company's stock.

Principal Financial Group Price Performance

PFG traded down $0.81 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $80.19. 1,190,191 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,324,456. The firm has a market capitalization of $17.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 0.99. 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 one year low of $68.39 and a one year high of $91.98. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $77.86 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $79.64.

Principal Financial Group (NYSE:PFG - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results 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 firm posted $1.65 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts predict that Principal Financial Group, Inc. will post 8.5 EPS for the current year.

Principal Financial Group Increases Dividend

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

PFG has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. UBS Group lowered their price target on shares of Principal Financial Group from $93.00 to $80.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 29th. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Principal Financial Group from $76.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a report on Monday. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Principal Financial Group from $68.00 to $69.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 29th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Principal Financial Group from $67.00 to $71.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a report on Monday, May 19th. Finally, Piper Sandler raised their price objective on shares of Principal Financial Group from $88.00 to $89.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Principal Financial Group presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $83.69.

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.