Bank of America Corp DE Trims Position in Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG)

Bank of America Corp DE lessened its stake in shares of Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG - Free Report) by 11.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 9,802,354 shares of the company's stock after selling 1,328,690 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE owned approximately 4.29% of Principal Financial Group worth $758,800,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Barclays PLC raised its position in Principal Financial Group by 12.3% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 806,672 shares of the company's stock worth $69,293,000 after buying an additional 88,179 shares during the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new position in Principal Financial Group during the third quarter valued at approximately $114,000. Synovus Financial Corp purchased a new stake in Principal Financial Group in the third quarter worth approximately $281,000. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its position in Principal Financial Group by 16.4% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 84,378 shares of the company's stock worth $7,570,000 after purchasing an additional 11,868 shares during the period. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its stake in Principal Financial Group by 3.0% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 231,277 shares of the company's stock valued at $19,867,000 after buying an additional 6,817 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.08% of the company's stock.

Principal Financial Group Stock Up 0.1 %

PFG stock traded up $0.06 during trading on Friday, hitting $78.90. 933,060 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,315,237. Principal Financial Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $68.39 and a 1 year high of $91.98. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $78.45 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $81.22. The firm has a market capitalization of $17.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.81, a PEG ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a quick ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 0.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36.

Principal Financial Group (NYSE:PFG - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, April 28th. The company reported $1.81 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates 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 period in the previous year, the business posted $1.65 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Principal Financial Group, Inc. will post 8.5 EPS for the current 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 issued 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.85%. Principal Financial Group's payout ratio is presently 65.10%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently commented on the company. Barclays cut their price objective on Principal Financial Group from $80.00 to $76.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 11th. UBS Group reduced their price target on shares of Principal Financial Group from $93.00 to $80.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 29th. Piper Sandler raised their price objective on shares of Principal Financial Group from $93.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on shares of Principal Financial Group from $86.00 to $87.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target 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. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $83.54.

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.