State Street Corp Grows Stock Holdings in Principal Financial Group, Inc. $PFG

Key Points

• State Street increased its Principal Financial Group stake by 0.8% in the second quarter, owning 10.26 million shares worth approximately $1.11 billion. Institutional investors collectively hold 75.08% of PFG.
• Principal Financial Group reported quarterly EPS of $2.50, exceeding estimates of $2.33, while revenue of $3.91 billion fell short of expectations. The company raised its quarterly dividend from $0.82 to $0.84 per share, yielding about 3.0% annually.
• Analysts maintain a generally neutral outlook, with a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $108.83, below the stock’s reported price of $113.59.

State Street Corp increased its position in shares of Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:PFG - Free Report) by 0.8% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 10,264,856 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 85,014 shares during the period. State Street Corp owned 4.79% of Principal Financial Group worth $1,106,346,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of PFG. Security National Bank of Sioux City Iowa IA acquired a new stake in Principal Financial Group during the second quarter worth approximately $420,000. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Principal Financial Group by 5.7% in the 2nd quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 16,558 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,785,000 after buying an additional 899 shares during the last quarter. National Pension Service raised its stake in Principal Financial Group by 309.1% during the 2nd quarter. National Pension Service now owns 537,896 shares of the company's stock worth $57,974,000 after acquiring an additional 406,427 shares in the last quarter. Engineers Gate Manager LP acquired a new stake in Principal Financial Group during the 2nd quarter worth $202,000. Finally, Pinnacle Wealth Management Advisory Group LLC purchased a new stake in Principal Financial Group in the second quarter valued at $212,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.08% of the company's stock.

Principal Financial Group Price Performance

Principal Financial Group stock opened at $113.59 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 0.28 and a quick ratio of 0.28. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $113.46 and a 200-day simple moving average of $104.67. Principal Financial Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $77.90 and a 12 month high of $121.18. The stock has a market capitalization of $24.32 billion, a PE ratio of 16.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.05 and a beta of 0.86.

Principal Financial Group (NASDAQ:PFG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 29th. The company reported $2.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.33 by $0.17. The company had revenue of $3.91 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.11 billion. Principal Financial Group had a net margin of 9.93% and a return on equity of 16.49%. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.16 EPS. Equities analysts predict that Principal Financial Group, Inc. will post 9.62 earnings per share for the current year.

Principal Financial Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 25th. Investors of record on Thursday, September 3rd will be given a $0.84 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, September 3rd. This is an increase from Principal Financial Group's previous quarterly dividend of $0.82. This represents a $3.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.0%. Principal Financial Group's payout ratio is 47.73%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have issued reports on PFG shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Principal Financial Group from $106.00 to $107.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, August 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Principal Financial Group from $114.00 to $113.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on Principal Financial Group from $91.00 to $98.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, July 10th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods restated a "market perform" rating on shares of Principal Financial Group in a research note on Thursday, September 3rd. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price target on Principal Financial Group from $98.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, September 10th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $108.83.

Principal Financial Group Company Profile

Principal Financial Group, Inc is a global financial services company headquartered in Des Moines, Iowa. Founded in 1879, the company provides investment management, retirement, insurance and financial wellness solutions to businesses, individuals and institutional investors.

Principal offers employer-sponsored retirement plans, including defined contribution and defined benefit programs, as well as pension risk transfer solutions. Its insurance products and services include group benefits, individual life insurance and disability insurance.

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