Principal Financial Group (NYSE:PFG) Hits New 1-Year High at $86.79

Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG - Get Free Report) hit a new 52-week high during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $86.79 and last traded at $86.53, with a volume of 90641 shares. The stock had previously closed at $85.77.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on PFG shares. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on Principal Financial Group from $75.00 to $83.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 14th. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on Principal Financial Group from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 13th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on Principal Financial Group from $80.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research note on Friday, February 16th. Finally, Evercore ISI raised Principal Financial Group from an "underperform" rating to an "inline" rating and upped their price objective for the company from $82.00 to $83.00 in a research note on Thursday, January 4th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and nine have issued a hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $76.18.

Principal Financial Group Price Performance

The company has a fifty day moving average of $81.11 and a 200 day moving average of $76.47. The firm has a market capitalization of $19.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.01, a PEG ratio of 1.06 and a beta of 1.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 0.30 and a quick ratio of 0.30.

Principal Financial Group (NYSE:PFG - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Monday, February 12th. The company reported $1.83 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.70 by $0.13. The business had revenue of $2.69 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.53 billion. Principal Financial Group had a return on equity of 15.14% and a net margin of 4.56%. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.70 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Principal Financial Group, Inc. will post 7.6 earnings per share for the current year.

Principal Financial Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 12th were issued a dividend of $0.69 per share. This represents a $2.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.26%. This is a boost from Principal Financial Group's previous quarterly dividend of $0.67. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 11th. Principal Financial Group's dividend payout ratio is presently 112.65%.

Principal Financial Group declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase program on Monday, February 12th that permits the company to repurchase $1.50 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to purchase up to 7.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are generally an indication that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Principal Financial Group

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of PFG. Merit Financial Group LLC increased its position in shares of Principal Financial Group by 2.3% during the 3rd quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 6,947 shares of the company's stock valued at $501,000 after purchasing an additional 153 shares during the last quarter. Comerica Bank bought a new position in Principal Financial Group in the 3rd quarter worth about $4,667,000. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd boosted its stake in Principal Financial Group by 15.8% in the 4th quarter. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd now owns 277,157 shares of the company's stock worth $21,804,000 after purchasing an additional 37,836 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its stake in Principal Financial Group by 15.0% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 4,423,975 shares of the company's stock worth $318,836,000 after purchasing an additional 575,646 shares during the period. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its stake in Principal Financial Group by 1,218.9% in the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 250,602 shares of the company's stock worth $19,715,000 after purchasing an additional 231,601 shares during the period. 75.08% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Principal Financial Group Company 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.