LPL Financial LLC Grows Stake in Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG)

Key Points

• LPL Financial LLC increased its stake in Principal Financial Group by 8.5%, owning over 115,000 shares worth approximately $9.77 million as of the latest SEC filing.
• Principal Financial Group recently announced a quarterly dividend increase from $0.76 to $0.78, with a dividend yield of 4.1%.
• Analysts have mixed ratings on Principal Financial Group, with three sell ratings, five hold ratings, and two buy ratings, while the average price target is set at $86.70.

LPL Financial LLC increased its position in Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG - Free Report) by 8.5% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 115,811 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 9,064 shares during the period. LPL Financial LLC owned approximately 0.05% of Principal Financial Group worth $9,771,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. von Borstel & Associates Inc. acquired a new stake in Principal Financial Group during the 1st quarter valued at $32,000. Navigoe LLC acquired a new stake in Principal Financial Group during the 4th quarter valued at $37,000. Ameriflex Group Inc. acquired a new stake in Principal Financial Group during the 4th quarter valued at $37,000. Covestor Ltd grew its holdings in Principal Financial Group by 144.3% during the 4th quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 540 shares of the company's stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 319 shares during the last quarter. Finally, MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Principal Financial Group during the 1st quarter valued at $46,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.08% of the company's stock.

Principal Financial Group Trading Down 0.1%

Shares of PFG traded down $0.11 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $76.48. The stock had a trading volume of 921,952 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,416,784. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a quick ratio of 0.30 and a current ratio of 0.29. The firm has a market cap of $17.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.45, a P/E/G ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 1.00. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $78.39 and its 200 day simple moving average is $79.71. Principal Financial Group, Inc. has a 12-month low of $68.39 and a 12-month high of $91.97.

Principal Financial Group (NYSE:PFG - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Monday, July 28th. The company reported $2.16 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 company posted $1.63 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Principal Financial Group, Inc. will post 8.5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Principal Financial Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 26th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, September 4th will be given a $0.78 dividend. This represents a $3.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.1%. This is a boost from Principal Financial Group's previous quarterly dividend of $0.76. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, September 4th. Principal Financial Group's dividend payout ratio is 62.78%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have commented on PFG. Piper Sandler increased 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. UBS Group increased their target price on Principal Financial Group from $85.00 to $87.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 29th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on Principal Financial Group from $73.00 to $72.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price target on Principal Financial Group from $90.00 to $88.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, August 4th. Finally, Barclays increased their price target on Principal Financial Group from $76.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research note on Monday, July 7th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $86.70.

About Principal Financial Group

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.