Two Sigma Investments LP Decreases Stake in Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG)

Two Sigma Investments LP lowered its holdings in shares of Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG - Free Report) by 43.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 104,674 shares of the company's stock after selling 79,669 shares during the quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP's holdings in Principal Financial Group were worth $8,103,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Legacy Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Principal Financial Group during the 4th quarter worth about $771,000. Columbus Macro LLC grew its stake in shares of Principal Financial Group by 46.7% during the fourth quarter. Columbus Macro LLC now owns 25,653 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,986,000 after buying an additional 8,169 shares during the last quarter. Lecap Asset Management Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Principal Financial Group by 135.6% during the fourth quarter. Lecap Asset Management Ltd. now owns 22,469 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,739,000 after buying an additional 12,933 shares during the last quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP lifted its stake in shares of Principal Financial Group by 2,064.3% during the 4th quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP now owns 148,299 shares of the company's stock worth $11,480,000 after acquiring an additional 141,447 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Entropy Technologies LP lifted its stake in shares of Principal Financial Group by 630.3% during the 4th quarter. Entropy Technologies LP now owns 25,014 shares of the company's stock worth $1,936,000 after acquiring an additional 21,589 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 75.08% of the company's stock.

Principal Financial Group Stock Down 1.5%

NYSE:PFG traded down $1.22 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $77.67. 1,069,057 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,321,009. The stock has a market capitalization of $17.41 billion, a PE ratio of 11.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 1.01. Principal Financial Group, Inc. has a 12-month low of $68.39 and a 12-month high of $91.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a quick ratio of 0.30 and a current ratio of 0.29. The business has a 50-day moving average of $77.45 and a two-hundred day moving average of $80.83.

Principal Financial Group (NYSE:PFG - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 28th. The company reported $1.81 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.83 by ($0.02). Principal Financial Group had a net margin of 9.74% and a return on equity of 14.68%. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.65 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast 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 declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 27th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 2nd will be issued a $0.76 dividend. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.91%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 2nd. This is an increase from Principal Financial Group's previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. Principal Financial Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 65.10%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have weighed in on PFG. UBS Group reduced their target price on Principal Financial Group from $93.00 to $80.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 29th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of Principal Financial Group from $67.00 to $71.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a report on Monday, May 19th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on shares of Principal Financial Group from $86.00 to $87.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. Piper Sandler upped their target price on shares of Principal Financial Group from $93.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Principal Financial Group from $68.00 to $69.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 29th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $83.85.

About Principal Financial Group

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.