Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. Has $51.10 Million Stock Holdings in Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG)

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. trimmed its stake in Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG - Free Report) by 2.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 649,504 shares of the company's stock after selling 19,003 shares during the quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. owned about 0.27% of Principal Financial Group worth $51,096,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of PFG. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Principal Financial Group by 0.5% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 29,028,108 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,130,953,000 after purchasing an additional 150,598 shares in the last quarter. Morgan Stanley grew its stake in Principal Financial Group by 67.3% during the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 4,514,124 shares of the company's stock worth $378,825,000 after buying an additional 1,816,343 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its stake in Principal Financial Group by 15.0% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 4,423,975 shares of the company's stock worth $318,836,000 after buying an additional 575,646 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp increased its position in shares of Principal Financial Group by 1.1% in the first quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 4,113,693 shares of the company's stock worth $301,986,000 after acquiring an additional 43,319 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Principal Financial Group by 6.6% in the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,054,133 shares of the company's stock valued at $297,615,000 after acquiring an additional 251,562 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.08% of the company's stock.

Principal Financial Group Stock Up 1.9 %

PFG stock traded up $1.48 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $80.44. 978,690 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 888,070. The company has a current ratio of 0.30, a quick ratio of 0.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. The company has a market capitalization of $18.92 billion, a PE ratio of 32.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 1.25. Principal Financial Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $65.17 and a twelve month high of $86.79. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $81.64 and a 200 day simple moving average of $77.10.

Principal Financial Group (NYSE:PFG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 12th. The company reported $1.83 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.70 by $0.13. The business had revenue of $2.69 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.53 billion. Principal Financial Group had a net margin of 4.56% and a return on equity of 15.14%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.70 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Principal Financial Group, Inc. will post 7.6 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Principal Financial Group declared that its board has initiated a share repurchase plan on Monday, February 12th that permits the company to buyback $1.50 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to purchase up to 7.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are generally a sign that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Principal Financial Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 12th were given a dividend of $0.69 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 11th. This represents a $2.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.43%. This is a positive change from Principal Financial Group's previous quarterly dividend of $0.67. Principal Financial Group's dividend payout ratio is currently 112.65%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on PFG. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Principal Financial Group from $86.00 to $91.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Evercore ISI increased their target price on Principal Financial Group from $84.00 to $86.00 and gave the company an "in-line" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Principal Financial Group from $81.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, April 15th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on Principal Financial Group from $85.00 to $89.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of 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. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and ten have given a hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Principal Financial Group presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $80.64.

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.