Munich Reinsurance Co Stock Corp in Munich Has $5.66 Million Position in Principal Financial Group, Inc. $PFG

Key Points

• Munich Reinsurance trimmed its stake in Principal Financial Group by 17.5% in the first quarter, ending with 62,847 shares valued at about $5.66 million.
• Principal Financial Group reported Q1 EPS of $2.07, beating analyst expectations, though revenue of $3.53 billion came in below forecasts.
• The company raised its quarterly dividend to $0.82 per share from $0.80, and its stock currently has a Hold consensus rating with an average price target of $101.90.

Munich Reinsurance Co Stock Corp in Munich lessened its holdings in shares of Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:PFG - Free Report) by 17.5% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 62,847 shares of the company's stock after selling 13,357 shares during the quarter. Munich Reinsurance Co Stock Corp in Munich's holdings in Principal Financial Group were worth $5,663,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Unison Advisors LLC grew its position in Principal Financial Group by 0.9% in the first quarter. Unison Advisors LLC now owns 61,778 shares of the company's stock worth $5,567,000 after acquiring an additional 535 shares in the last quarter. DGS Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Principal Financial Group by 4.1% during the 1st quarter. DGS Capital Management LLC now owns 4,425 shares of the company's stock worth $399,000 after purchasing an additional 173 shares during the last quarter. Ascentis Independent Advisors bought a new position in shares of Principal Financial Group during the 1st quarter valued at $61,000. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Principal Financial Group during the 1st quarter valued at $703,000. Finally, V Square Quantitative Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Principal Financial Group by 6.7% in the 1st quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 20,799 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,874,000 after purchasing an additional 1,301 shares during the last quarter. 75.08% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other Principal Financial Group news, insider Wee Yee Cheong sold 9,183 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $101.26, for a total value of $929,870.58. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 77,188 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,816,056.88. This represents a 10.63% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, General Counsel George Djurasovic sold 2,571 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $100.83, for a total value of $259,233.93. Following the completion of the sale, the general counsel owned 21,906 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,208,781.98. This represents a 10.50% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 28,317 shares of company stock worth $2,884,902 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 1.13% of the company's stock.

Principal Financial Group Trading Down 1.9%

Shares of Principal Financial Group stock opened at $110.74 on Thursday. Principal Financial Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $75.00 and a 1 year high of $113.86. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $105.52 and its 200-day simple moving average is $96.55. The company has a market cap of $23.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.84, a PEG ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 0.88. The company has a current ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33.

Principal Financial Group (NASDAQ:PFG - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The company reported $2.07 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.01 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $3.53 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.11 billion. Principal Financial Group had a net margin of 10.10% and a return on equity of 16.25%. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.81 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Principal Financial Group, Inc. will post 9.37 EPS for the current year.

Principal Financial Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 26th. Investors of record on Monday, June 1st were paid a dividend of $0.82 per share. This is a positive change from Principal Financial Group's previous quarterly dividend of $0.80. This represents a $3.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.0%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 1st. Principal Financial Group's dividend payout ratio is presently 46.92%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have commented on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reissued a "hold" rating and set a $92.00 target price on shares of Principal Financial Group in a research report on Thursday, March 26th. Bank of America reiterated an "underperform" rating and set a $95.00 price target (down from $98.00) on shares of Principal Financial Group in a research note on Wednesday, June 24th. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on Principal Financial Group from $107.00 to $112.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday. Evercore set a $108.00 price objective on Principal Financial Group in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Finally, Weiss Ratings lowered Principal Financial Group from a "buy (b)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $101.90.

Principal Financial Group Company Profile

Principal Financial Group NASDAQ: PFG is a global financial services company headquartered in Des Moines, Iowa, that provides a range of retirement, investment and insurance solutions to individuals, employers and institutional clients. The firm's business is organized around retirement services, asset management, and insurance products designed to help clients plan, invest for, and protect income over the long term.

Principal's product and service offerings include retirement plan recordkeeping and administration for employer-sponsored plans, individual and group retirement annuities, life and disability insurance, employee benefits solutions, and wealth management services.

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