Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd Trims Stake in Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG)

Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd cut its stake in shares of Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG - Free Report) by 56.2% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 5,133 shares of the company's stock after selling 6,592 shares during the period. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd's holdings in Principal Financial Group were worth $433,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Allianz Asset Management GmbH increased its stake in shares of Principal Financial Group by 9.5% in the 1st quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 212,050 shares of the company's stock worth $17,891,000 after purchasing an additional 18,481 shares in the last quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC increased its stake in shares of Principal Financial Group by 568.6% in the 1st quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 1,979 shares of the company's stock worth $167,000 after purchasing an additional 1,683 shares in the last quarter. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky increased its stake in shares of Principal Financial Group by 2.9% in the 1st quarter. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky now owns 16,229 shares of the company's stock worth $1,369,000 after purchasing an additional 461 shares in the last quarter. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd increased its stake in shares of Principal Financial Group by 34.2% in the 1st quarter. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd now owns 893,246 shares of the company's stock worth $75,363,000 after purchasing an additional 227,836 shares in the last quarter. Finally, FAS Wealth Partners Inc. increased its stake in shares of Principal Financial Group by 3.9% in the 1st quarter. FAS Wealth Partners Inc. now owns 30,032 shares of the company's stock worth $2,534,000 after purchasing an additional 1,134 shares in the last quarter. 75.08% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Principal Financial Group Trading Down 2.5%

Shares of NYSE:PFG traded down $1.92 during trading on Friday, reaching $75.91. The company's stock had a trading volume of 459,124 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,420,549. The company has a current ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. Principal Financial Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $68.39 and a 12 month high of $91.97. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $78.60 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $79.94. The stock has a market capitalization of $17.02 billion, a PE ratio of 11.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 0.99.

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

Principal Financial Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 26th. Investors of record on Thursday, September 4th will be given 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 yield of 4.1%. Principal Financial Group's dividend payout ratio is 62.78%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. Wells Fargo & Company reduced 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. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on Principal Financial Group from $87.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. Piper Sandler increased their price target on Principal Financial Group from $88.00 to $89.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 3rd. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Principal Financial Group from $85.00 to $87.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Principal Financial Group from $92.00 to $101.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Principal Financial Group has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $86.90.

Principal Financial Group Company 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.