Wedge Capital Management L L P NC Has $37.41 Million Stock Position in Principal Financial Group, Inc. $PFG

Key Points

• Wedge Capital Management cut its Principal Financial Group position by 11.1% in the second quarter, selling 43,206 shares and retaining 347,146 shares worth approximately $37.4 million. Institutional investors collectively own 75.08% of PFG.
• Principal Financial Group reported quarterly EPS of $2.50, beating analysts’ $2.33 estimate, though revenue of $3.99 billion fell short of the $4.11 billion consensus forecast.
• The company raised its quarterly dividend to $0.84 per share, equating to an annualized $3.36 payout and a 3.0% yield. Analysts maintain a consensus “Hold” rating with an average price target of $105.83, below the stock’s $113.03 opening price.

Wedge Capital Management L L P NC lowered its position in Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:PFG - Free Report) by 11.1% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 347,146 shares of the company's stock after selling 43,206 shares during the period. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC owned about 0.16% of Principal Financial Group worth $37,415,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in PFG. Focus Financial Network Inc. raised its position in shares of Principal Financial Group by 2.0% during the second quarter. Focus Financial Network Inc. now owns 5,613 shares of the company's stock worth $605,000 after purchasing an additional 110 shares during the period. Prosperity Consulting Group LLC raised its holdings in Principal Financial Group by 1.6% during the 1st quarter. Prosperity Consulting Group LLC now owns 6,921 shares of the company's stock worth $624,000 after buying an additional 111 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its stake in Principal Financial Group by 14.8% in the first quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 921 shares of the company's stock valued at $83,000 after buying an additional 119 shares in the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Principal Financial Group by 7.6% in the fourth quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 1,686 shares of the company's stock valued at $149,000 after buying an additional 119 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Beacon Financial Group raised its holdings in shares of Principal Financial Group by 2.8% during the first quarter. Beacon Financial Group now owns 4,451 shares of the company's stock worth $401,000 after acquiring an additional 120 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.08% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at Principal Financial Group

In related news, insider Wee Yee Cheong sold 7,534 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $103.16, for a total transaction of $777,207.44. Following the sale, the insider owned 66,443 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,854,259.88. This represents a 10.18% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 1.13% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Principal Financial Group Price Performance

Shares of PFG opened at $113.03 on Wednesday. The company's 50-day moving average is $110.67 and its 200-day moving average is $100.43. 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 firm has a market capitalization of $24.20 billion, a PE ratio of 16.06, a PEG ratio of 1.04 and a beta of 0.88. Principal Financial Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $76.64 and a fifty-two week high of $116.61.

Principal Financial Group (NASDAQ:PFG - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, July 27th. The company reported $2.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.33 by $0.17. Principal Financial Group had a return on equity of 16.49% and a net margin of 9.93%.The company had revenue of $3.99 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.11 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.16 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that Principal Financial Group, Inc. will post 9.56 EPS for the current year.

Principal Financial Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 25th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, September 3rd will be issued a $0.84 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, September 3rd. This represents a $3.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.0%. This is an increase from Principal Financial Group's previous quarterly dividend of $0.82. Principal Financial Group's payout ratio is presently 46.59%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

PFG has been the topic of a number of research reports. Bank of America boosted their price target on Principal Financial Group from $94.00 to $104.00 and gave the company an "underperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 28th. Citigroup lowered shares of Principal Financial Group from a "sell" rating to an "underperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 24th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Principal Financial Group from $107.00 to $112.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, July 6th. Atlantic Securities set a $94.00 price target on shares of Principal Financial Group in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Principal Financial Group from $106.00 to $107.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $105.83.

Principal Financial Group Company Profile

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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