Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd Has $4.96 Million Stake in Principal Financial Group, Inc. $PFG

Key Points

• Swiss Life Asset Management cut its Principal Financial Group stake by 90.5% in the fourth quarter, though it still held 56,195 shares valued at about $4.96 million.
• Principal Financial Group reported Q1 EPS of $2.07, topping analyst expectations, while revenue came in below estimates at $3.53 billion. The company also said full-year EPS is projected at 9.31.
• The board raised the quarterly dividend to $0.82 per share from $0.80, and insiders recently sold shares, including notable transactions by Wee Yee Cheong and General Counsel George Djurasovic.

Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd trimmed its holdings in Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:PFG - Free Report) by 90.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 56,195 shares of the company's stock after selling 538,102 shares during the period. Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd's holdings in Principal Financial Group were worth $4,957,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. acquired a new stake in Principal Financial Group during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Quest 10 Wealth Builders Inc. lifted its holdings in Principal Financial Group by 343.6% during the 4th quarter. Quest 10 Wealth Builders Inc. now owns 346 shares of the company's stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 268 shares during the last quarter. FWL Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in Principal Financial Group during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $32,000. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. lifted its holdings in Principal Financial Group by 66.5% during the 4th quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. now owns 398 shares of the company's stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 159 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Rialto Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in Principal Financial Group by 3,754.5% during the 4th quarter. Rialto Wealth Management LLC now owns 424 shares of the company's stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 413 shares during the last quarter. 75.08% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Principal Financial Group news, insider Wee Yee Cheong sold 9,183 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $101.26, for a total transaction of $929,870.58. Following the transaction, the insider owned 77,188 shares in the company, valued at $7,816,056.88. This trade represents a 10.63% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, General Counsel George Djurasovic sold 2,571 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $100.83, for a total value of $259,233.93. Following the transaction, the general counsel owned 21,906 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,208,781.98. This trade represents a 10.50% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 17,572 shares of company stock worth $1,776,769. Corporate insiders own 1.13% of the company's stock.

Principal Financial Group Price Performance

Principal Financial Group stock opened at $100.42 on Thursday. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $93.13 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $90.38. Principal Financial Group, Inc. has a one year low of $75.00 and a one year high of $103.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 0.27 and a quick ratio of 0.27. The firm has a market cap of $21.69 billion, a PE ratio of 14.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 0.89.

Principal Financial Group (NASDAQ:PFG - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The company reported $2.07 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.01 by $0.06. Principal Financial Group had a return on equity of 16.25% and a net margin of 10.10%.The firm had revenue of $3.53 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.11 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.81 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that Principal Financial Group, Inc. will post 9.31 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Principal Financial Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 26th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 1st will be paid a dividend of $0.82 per share. This is a boost from Principal Financial Group's previous quarterly dividend of $0.80. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 1st. This represents a $3.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.3%. Principal Financial Group's dividend payout ratio is 45.78%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently weighed in on the company. Weiss Ratings cut Principal Financial Group from a "buy (b)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Principal Financial Group from $93.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 3rd. Barclays lifted their price target on Principal Financial Group from $85.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a report on Friday, April 24th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reissued a "hold" rating and set a $92.00 price target on shares of Principal Financial Group in a report on Thursday, March 26th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on Principal Financial Group from $91.00 to $87.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 10th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $95.33.

About Principal Financial Group

Principal Financial Group NASDAQ: PFG is a global financial services company headquartered in Des Moines, Iowa, that provides a range of retirement, investment and insurance solutions to individuals, employers and institutional clients. The firm's business is organized around retirement services, asset management, and insurance products designed to help clients plan, invest for, and protect income over the long term.

Principal's product and service offerings include retirement plan recordkeeping and administration for employer-sponsored plans, individual and group retirement annuities, life and disability insurance, employee benefits solutions, and wealth management services.

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