8,138 Shares in Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG) Purchased by Marshall Wace LLP

Marshall Wace LLP purchased a new position in Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 8,138 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $630,000.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Legacy Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in Principal Financial Group during the fourth quarter worth about $771,000. Columbus Macro LLC grew its position in Principal Financial Group by 46.7% in the fourth quarter. Columbus Macro LLC now owns 25,653 shares of the company's stock worth $1,986,000 after acquiring an additional 8,169 shares during the period. Lecap Asset Management Ltd. raised its position in Principal Financial Group by 135.6% in the fourth quarter. Lecap Asset Management Ltd. now owns 22,469 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,739,000 after purchasing an additional 12,933 shares during the period. Quantbot Technologies LP lifted its stake in shares of Principal Financial Group by 2,064.3% in the 4th quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP now owns 148,299 shares of the company's stock valued at $11,480,000 after purchasing an additional 141,447 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. increased its position in shares of Principal Financial Group by 2.6% during the 4th quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 5,223 shares of the company's stock worth $404,000 after purchasing an additional 132 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.08% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently issued reports on PFG. BMO Capital Markets assumed coverage on Principal Financial Group in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. They set a "market perform" rating and a $93.00 target price on the stock. Piper Sandler lifted their target price on Principal Financial Group from $93.00 to $95.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on Principal Financial Group from $86.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Principal Financial Group from $80.00 to $76.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 11th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Principal Financial Group from $65.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday. 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. According to MarketBeat.com, Principal Financial Group currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $83.54.

Principal Financial Group Trading Up 1.6 %

PFG traded up $1.21 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $77.55. 1,816,666 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,313,222. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $78.78 and a 200 day moving average price of $81.43. The company has a current ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. Principal Financial Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $68.39 and a 1 year high of $91.98. The firm has a market cap of $17.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 1.01.

Principal Financial Group (NYSE:PFG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 28th. The company reported $1.81 earnings per share 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 prior year, the business earned $1.65 earnings per share. As a group, 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 declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 27th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 2nd will be paid a $0.76 dividend. This is a boost from Principal Financial Group's previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 2nd. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.92%. Principal Financial Group's dividend payout ratio is presently 65.10%.

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.