Principal Financial Group, Inc. $PFG Shares Bought by Swedbank AB

Key Points

• Swedbank AB increased its holdings in Principal Financial Group, Inc. by 21.7% during the second quarter, acquiring an additional 35,228 shares, bringing its total ownership to approximately $15.68 million.
• Principal Financial Group has recently declared a quarterly dividend increase to $0.78 per share, up from $0.76, with an expected annual yield of 3.8%.
• The company's last quarterly earnings surpassed analysts' expectations with an EPS of $2.16, exceeding the forecast of $1.97, indicating a strong financial position.

Swedbank AB grew its holdings in Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG - Free Report) by 21.7% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 197,386 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 35,228 shares during the period. Swedbank AB owned approximately 0.09% of Principal Financial Group worth $15,678,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of PFG. Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in Principal Financial Group by 802.2% in the first quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 3,707,534 shares of the company's stock valued at $312,805,000 after buying an additional 3,296,608 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Principal Financial Group by 114.2% in the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 2,613,143 shares of the company's stock worth $220,471,000 after acquiring an additional 1,393,008 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its position in shares of Principal Financial Group by 12.6% during the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 1,877,246 shares of the company's stock worth $145,318,000 after purchasing an additional 209,885 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in Principal Financial Group by 1.4% in the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,468,728 shares of the company's stock valued at $123,917,000 after purchasing an additional 20,221 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada raised its position in Principal Financial Group by 1.7% in the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 1,080,097 shares of the company's stock valued at $91,128,000 after purchasing an additional 17,969 shares during the period. 75.08% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Principal Financial Group Trading Up 0.4%

PFG stock traded up $0.36 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $82.57. The stock had a trading volume of 318,621 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,383,639. The company's 50-day moving average price is $79.49 and its 200 day moving average price is $78.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 0.29 and a quick ratio of 0.30. The firm has a market cap of $18.39 billion, a PE ratio of 12.36, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 1.03. 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 announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, July 28th. The company reported $2.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.63 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that Principal Financial Group, Inc. will post 8.5 earnings per share 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. Stockholders of record on Thursday, September 4th will be issued a $0.78 dividend. This is a positive change from Principal Financial Group's previous quarterly dividend of $0.76. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, September 4th. This represents a $3.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.8%. Principal Financial Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 62.78%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

PFG has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Piper Sandler raised their price target on Principal Financial Group from $88.00 to $89.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 3rd. UBS Group raised 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Principal Financial Group from $92.00 to $101.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of Principal Financial Group from $73.00 to $72.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. Finally, Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Principal Financial Group from $76.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research report on Monday, July 7th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and a consensus target price of $86.90.

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.