Principal Financial Group Inc. Increases Stake in Pinnacle Financial Partners, Inc. (NASDAQ:PNFP)

Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its position in Pinnacle Financial Partners, Inc. (NASDAQ:PNFP - Free Report) by 3.9% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 881,347 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 32,975 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned approximately 1.14% of Pinnacle Financial Partners worth $93,458,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in Pinnacle Financial Partners by 51.7% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,616 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $171,000 after purchasing an additional 551 shares in the last quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Pinnacle Financial Partners in the 1st quarter worth about $48,000. Town & Country Bank & Trust CO dba First Bankers Trust CO bought a new position in Pinnacle Financial Partners in the 1st quarter worth about $1,563,000. Yorktown Management & Research Co Inc bought a new position in Pinnacle Financial Partners in the 1st quarter worth about $265,000. Finally, Vest Financial LLC bought a new position in Pinnacle Financial Partners during the 1st quarter valued at about $1,006,000. Institutional investors own 87.40% of the company's stock.

Pinnacle Financial Partners Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:PNFP traded up $0.83 during trading on Friday, hitting $117.83. The company's stock had a trading volume of 381,903 shares, compared to its average volume of 510,446. The company has a 50-day moving average of $107.34 and a 200-day moving average of $109.16. Pinnacle Financial Partners, Inc. has a 12 month low of $76.75 and a 12 month high of $131.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a current ratio of 0.89 and a quick ratio of 0.89. The firm has a market cap of $9.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.07 and a beta of 1.01.

Pinnacle Financial Partners (NASDAQ:PNFP - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 14th. The financial services provider reported $1.90 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.82 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $475.37 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $478.11 million. Pinnacle Financial Partners had a net margin of 15.98% and a return on equity of 9.29%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.53 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Pinnacle Financial Partners, Inc. will post 7.85 earnings per share for the current year.

Pinnacle Financial Partners Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 30th. Investors of record on Friday, May 2nd were issued a $0.24 dividend. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.81%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 2nd. Pinnacle Financial Partners's dividend payout ratio is 15.53%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have issued reports on PNFP. Barclays lowered their target price on shares of Pinnacle Financial Partners from $135.00 to $125.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Hovde Group upgraded shares of Pinnacle Financial Partners from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $111.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their target price on shares of Pinnacle Financial Partners from $130.00 to $115.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on shares of Pinnacle Financial Partners from $125.00 to $105.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of Pinnacle Financial Partners in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. They set a "buy" rating and a $135.00 target price on the stock. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $122.36.

Pinnacle Financial Partners Company Profile

Pinnacle Financial Partners, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as the bank holding company for Pinnacle Bank that provides various banking products and services to individuals, businesses, and professional entities in the United States. The company accepts various deposits, including savings, noninterest-bearing and interest-bearing checking, money market, and certificate of deposit accounts; and provides treasury management services, which includes online wire origination, enhanced ACH origination services, positive pay, zero balance and sweep accounts, automated bill pay services, electronic receivables processing, lockbox processing, and merchant card acceptance services.