Numerai GP LLC Reduces Holdings in Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG)

Numerai GP LLC cut its holdings in Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG - Free Report) by 46.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,026 shares of the company's stock after selling 3,553 shares during the period. Numerai GP LLC's holdings in Principal Financial Group were worth $312,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Legacy Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Principal Financial Group during the 4th quarter valued at $771,000. Columbus Macro LLC grew its position in shares of Principal Financial Group by 46.7% during the 4th quarter. Columbus Macro LLC now owns 25,653 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,986,000 after acquiring an additional 8,169 shares during the period. Lecap Asset Management Ltd. grew its position in shares of Principal Financial Group by 135.6% during the 4th quarter. Lecap Asset Management Ltd. now owns 22,469 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,739,000 after acquiring an additional 12,933 shares during the period. Quantbot Technologies LP grew its position 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 valued at $11,480,000 after acquiring an additional 141,447 shares during the period. Finally, Entropy Technologies LP raised its stake in 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 period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.08% of the company's stock.

Principal Financial Group Price Performance

PFG traded down $0.25 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $81.30. The company's stock had a trading volume of 864,183 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,320,310. The business's 50-day moving average price is $78.08 and its 200-day moving average price is $81.08. Principal Financial Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $68.39 and a 12 month high of $91.98. The stock has a market cap of $18.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.17, a P/E/G ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 1.01. 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 (NYSE:PFG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results 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 return on equity of 14.68% and a net margin of 9.74%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.65 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Principal Financial Group, Inc. will post 8.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Principal Financial Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 27th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 2nd will be paid a dividend of $0.76 per share. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.74%. This is a positive change from Principal Financial Group's previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 2nd. Principal Financial Group's payout ratio is presently 65.10%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the stock. BMO Capital Markets assumed coverage on shares of 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. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on shares of Principal Financial Group from $86.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Principal Financial Group from $68.00 to $69.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 29th. UBS Group decreased their target price on shares of 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. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Principal Financial Group from $67.00 to $71.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research note on Monday. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $83.85.

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.