United Services Automobile Association Acquires New Position in Principal Financial Group, Inc. $PFG

Key Points

• United Services Automobile Association has made a new investment of approximately $409,000 in Principal Financial Group, acquiring 4,920 shares of the stock in the first quarter.
• Multiple hedge funds, including Victory Capital Management and Goldman Sachs Group, have significantly increased their positions in Principal Financial Group, with 75.08% of the stock now held by institutional investors.
• Principal Financial Group recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.78, representing a 3.8% yield, up from the previous dividend of $0.76.

United Services Automobile Association purchased a new stake in Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 4,920 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $409,000.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. von Borstel & Associates Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Principal Financial Group in the first quarter worth $32,000. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT bought a new stake in Principal Financial Group during the 1st quarter worth about $34,000. Ameriflex Group Inc. bought a new stake in Principal Financial Group during the 4th quarter worth about $37,000. GKV Capital Management Co. Inc. bought a new stake in Principal Financial Group during the first quarter worth about $45,000. Finally, MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Principal Financial Group during the first quarter worth about $46,000. Institutional investors own 75.08% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on PFG shares. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on Principal Financial Group from $75.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research note on Monday, August 18th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Principal Financial Group from $92.00 to $101.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. UBS Group increased their target price on Principal Financial Group from $85.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 29th. Finally, Barclays increased their price objective on Principal Financial Group from $76.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research report on Monday, July 7th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Principal Financial Group currently has an average rating of "Reduce" and a consensus target price of $86.90.

Principal Financial Group Stock Up 1.0%

NYSE:PFG traded up $0.81 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $80.90. 252,673 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,379,831. The company has a quick ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 0.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $79.44 and its 200-day simple moving average is $78.90. Principal Financial Group, Inc. has a one year low of $68.39 and a one year high of $91.97. The company has a market cap of $18.02 billion, a PE ratio of 12.13, a PEG ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 1.03.

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

Principal Financial Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 26th. Investors of record on Thursday, September 4th will be issued a dividend of $0.78 per share. This represents a $3.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.9%. This is an increase from Principal Financial Group's previous quarterly dividend of $0.76. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, September 4th. Principal Financial Group's dividend payout ratio is 62.78%.

Principal Financial Group 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.