Comerica Bank Lowers Position in Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG)

Comerica Bank cut its stake in Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG - Free Report) by 19.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 48,224 shares of the company's stock after selling 11,288 shares during the quarter. Comerica Bank's holdings in Principal Financial Group were worth $3,733,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Curio Wealth LLC purchased a new position in Principal Financial Group during the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. BankPlus Trust Department purchased a new position in Principal Financial Group during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Covestor Ltd increased its holdings in Principal Financial Group by 144.3% during the 4th quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 540 shares of the company's stock worth $42,000 after acquiring an additional 319 shares during the period. Sugarloaf Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in Principal Financial Group by 53.6% in the 4th quarter. Sugarloaf Wealth Management LLC now owns 559 shares of the company's stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 195 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Golden State Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Principal Financial Group during the 4th quarter valued at $46,000. 75.08% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on PFG shares. BMO Capital Markets initiated coverage on Principal Financial Group in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. They issued a "market perform" rating and a $93.00 price objective on the stock. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Principal Financial Group from $65.00 to $67.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a report on Tuesday. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a "sector perform" rating and set a $91.00 price objective on shares of Principal Financial Group in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Barclays lowered their target price on shares of Principal Financial Group from $80.00 to $76.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Finally, UBS Group cut 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 note on Tuesday, April 29th. Four research 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 company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $83.54.

Principal Financial Group Trading Up 0.1 %

PFG traded up $0.06 on Friday, hitting $78.90. 933,060 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,313,781. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a quick ratio of 0.30 and a current ratio of 0.29. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $78.45 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $81.28. The stock has a market capitalization of $17.69 billion, a PE ratio of 11.81, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 1.01. Principal Financial Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $68.39 and a 12 month high of $91.98.

Principal Financial Group (NYSE:PFG - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Monday, April 28th. The company reported $1.81 earnings per share (EPS) 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 year.

Principal Financial Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 27th. Investors of record on Monday, June 2nd will be paid a $0.76 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 2nd. This is a boost from Principal Financial Group's previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.85%. Principal Financial Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 65.10%.

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.