Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. Sells 4,493 Shares of Principal Financial Group, Inc. $PFG

Key Points

• Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. reduced its holdings in Principal Financial Group by 7.8%, selling 4,493 shares and now owns 52,836 shares valued at approximately $4.2 million.
• Principal Financial Group recently reported an EPS of $2.16 for the last quarter, exceeding estimates by $0.19, with analysts predicting 8.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
• The company also announced a quarterly dividend increase to $0.78 per share, representing a 3.7% dividend yield, up from the previous $0.76 per share.

Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. cut its holdings in Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG - Free Report) by 7.8% during the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 52,836 shares of the company's stock after selling 4,493 shares during the period. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V.'s holdings in Principal Financial Group were worth $4,197,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in PFG. Merit Financial Group LLC increased its stake in shares of Principal Financial Group by 30.1% in the first quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 9,227 shares of the company's stock worth $778,000 after purchasing an additional 2,137 shares during the period. Vest Financial LLC bought a new position in Principal Financial Group during the first quarter valued at about $787,000. Procyon Advisors LLC bought a new position in Principal Financial Group during the first quarter valued at about $453,000. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC increased its stake in Principal Financial Group by 9.7% during the first quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC now owns 28,489 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,404,000 after acquiring an additional 2,508 shares during the period. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its stake in Principal Financial Group by 49.3% during the first quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 10,773 shares of the company's stock valued at $917,000 after acquiring an additional 3,557 shares during the period. 75.08% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on PFG shares. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on Principal Financial Group from $73.00 to $72.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered 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. Barclays boosted their price target on Principal Financial Group from $76.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research note on Monday, July 7th. UBS Group boosted their price target on Principal Financial Group from $85.00 to $87.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 29th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Principal Financial Group from $92.00 to $101.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and an average target price of $86.90.

Principal Financial Group Trading Down 0.1%

PFG stock opened at $84.18 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $18.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.60, a P/E/G ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 1.03. 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 1-year low of $68.39 and a 1-year high of $91.97. The business's 50 day moving average is $80.03 and its 200-day moving average is $78.69.

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

Principal Financial Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 26th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, September 4th were issued a $0.78 dividend. This represents a $3.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, September 4th. This is an increase from Principal Financial Group's previous quarterly dividend of $0.76. Principal Financial Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 62.78%.

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.

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