BNP Paribas Financial Markets Sells 135,481 Shares of Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG)

BNP Paribas Financial Markets lessened its stake in shares of Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG - Free Report) by 51.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 127,401 shares of the company's stock after selling 135,481 shares during the quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets owned 0.05% of Principal Financial Group worth $10,023,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Ellevest Inc. increased its position in shares of Principal Financial Group by 3.3% during the third quarter. Ellevest Inc. now owns 4,644 shares of the company's stock worth $335,000 after acquiring an additional 149 shares during the last quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC increased its position in shares of Principal Financial Group by 2.3% during the third quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 6,947 shares of the company's stock worth $501,000 after acquiring an additional 153 shares during the last quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Principal Financial Group by 1.3% during the fourth quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 11,776 shares of the company's stock worth $926,000 after acquiring an additional 153 shares during the last quarter. Quent Capital LLC increased its position in shares of Principal Financial Group by 15.5% during the fourth quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 1,185 shares of the company's stock worth $93,000 after acquiring an additional 159 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Pinion Investment Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Principal Financial Group by 1.9% during the third quarter. Pinion Investment Advisors LLC now owns 9,193 shares of the company's stock worth $663,000 after acquiring an additional 169 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.08% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently weighed in on the company. Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on Principal Financial Group from $84.00 to $86.00 and gave the company an "in-line" rating in a report on Thursday, April 11th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on Principal Financial Group from $81.00 to $82.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, April 15th. Piper Sandler lifted their target price on Principal Financial Group from $85.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, April 5th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price 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. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on Principal Financial Group from $85.00 to $89.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and nine have given a hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Principal Financial Group presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $80.30.

Principal Financial Group Price Performance

PFG traded up $0.85 during trading on Friday, reaching $85.13. The stock had a trading volume of 601,070 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,099,952. The firm has a market capitalization of $19.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.91 and a beta of 1.24. The company has a quick ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 0.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. Principal Financial Group, Inc. has a 1-year low of $65.17 and a 1-year high of $86.79. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $82.36 and a two-hundred day moving average of $78.73.

Principal Financial Group (NYSE:PFG - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The company reported $1.65 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.74 by ($0.09). The firm had revenue of $4.05 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.68 billion. Principal Financial Group had a return on equity of 15.06% and a net margin of 8.70%. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.48 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Principal Financial Group, Inc. will post 7.52 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Principal Financial Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 27th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 3rd will be issued a $0.71 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 3rd. This represents a $2.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.34%. This is a boost from Principal Financial Group's previous quarterly dividend of $0.69. Principal Financial Group's dividend payout ratio is currently 52.67%.

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

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.