Strs Ohio Buys New Position in Principal Financial Group, Inc. $PFG

Key Points

• Strs Ohio purchased 24,003 shares in Principal Financial Group for approximately $2,025,000 during the 1st quarter, indicating institutional interest in the stock.
• Analysts have set varying price targets for Principal Financial Group, with a current average target price of $86.90 and an average rating of "Reduce."
• Principal Financial Group recently disclosed an increase in its quarterly dividend from $0.76 to $0.78, representing a 3.8% yield.

Strs Ohio bought a new position in Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 24,003 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,025,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in PFG. Victory Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Principal Financial Group by 802.2% during the 1st 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 in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its position in Principal Financial Group by 114.2% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 2,613,143 shares of the company's stock worth $220,471,000 after buying an additional 1,393,008 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its stake in shares of Principal Financial Group by 12.6% during the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 1,877,246 shares of the company's stock valued at $145,318,000 after buying an additional 209,885 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in Principal Financial Group by 1.4% in the first 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 boosted its holdings 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 worth $91,128,000 after acquiring an additional 17,969 shares in the last quarter. 75.08% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently commented on the company. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Principal Financial Group from $75.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research report on Monday, August 18th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price 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. UBS Group boosted their price target on Principal Financial Group from $85.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 29th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price target on Principal Financial Group from $90.00 to $88.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, August 4th. Finally, Barclays boosted their price target on Principal Financial Group from $76.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research note on Monday, July 7th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Reduce" and an average target price of $86.90.

Principal Financial Group Trading Up 0.3%

NYSE:PFG opened at $82.95 on Tuesday. 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 50-day moving average of $79.47 and a 200-day moving average of $78.89. The company has a market cap of $18.48 billion, a PE ratio of 12.42, a PEG ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 1.03. Principal Financial Group, Inc. has a one year low of $68.39 and a one year high of $91.97.

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 quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.63 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Principal Financial Group, Inc. will post 8.5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Principal Financial Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 26th. Investors of record on Thursday, September 4th will be issued a $0.78 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, September 4th. 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 dividend yield of 3.8%. Principal Financial Group's payout ratio is 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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