Principal Financial Group (NASDAQ:PFG) Insider Sells $478,484.37 in Stock

Key Points

• Wee Yee Cheong sold a total of 15,000 shares of PFG across April 29–May 1 for about $1.52M, reducing his direct stake by 5.20% to 86,371 shares (SEC Form 4 filed).
• Principal reported Q1 EPS of $2.07 versus a $2.01 consensus (beating estimates) while revenue missed at $3.53B versus $4.11B, and analysts' consensus remains a Hold with an average target of $95.33.
• The company raised its quarterly dividend to $0.82 (annualized $3.28, ~3.3% yield), while PFG shares traded down 1.6% to $99.49 amid a 12‑month range of $75.00–$101.90 and a market cap of about $21.5B.

Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:PFG - Get Free Report) insider Wee Yee Cheong sold 4,737 shares of Principal Financial Group stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $101.01, for a total transaction of $478,484.37. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 86,371 shares of the company's stock, valued at $8,724,334.71. This represents a 5.20% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link.

Wee Yee Cheong also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Friday, May 1st, Wee Yee Cheong sold 9,183 shares of Principal Financial Group stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $101.26, for a total transaction of $929,870.58.
• On Wednesday, April 29th, Wee Yee Cheong sold 1,080 shares of Principal Financial Group stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $101.00, for a total transaction of $109,080.00.

Principal Financial Group Trading Down 1.6%

Shares of PFG stock traded down $1.60 on Monday, hitting $99.49. The stock had a trading volume of 534,625 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,627,096. Principal Financial Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $75.00 and a twelve month high of $101.90. The firm has a market cap of $21.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.25, a PEG ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a current ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $92.37 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $89.33.

Principal Financial Group (NASDAQ:PFG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The company reported $2.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.01 by $0.06. Principal Financial Group had a net margin of 10.10% and a return on equity of 16.25%. The company had revenue of $3.53 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.11 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.81 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Principal Financial Group, Inc. will post 9.31 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Principal Financial Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 26th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 1st will be issued a $0.82 dividend. This is a positive change from Principal Financial Group's previous quarterly dividend of $0.80. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 1st. This represents a $3.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.3%. Principal Financial Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 45.78%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Principal Financial Group

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. DV Equities LLC bought a new stake in Principal Financial Group in the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. bought a new stake in Principal Financial Group in the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Hilton Head Capital Partners LLC bought a new stake in Principal Financial Group in the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. MBM Wealth Consultants LLC bought a new stake in Principal Financial Group during the 1st quarter worth about $28,000. Finally, Quest 10 Wealth Builders Inc. lifted its position in Principal Financial Group by 343.6% during the 4th quarter. Quest 10 Wealth Builders Inc. now owns 346 shares of the company's stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 268 shares in the last quarter. 75.08% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on PFG. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Principal Financial Group from a "buy (b)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a report on Friday. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of Principal Financial Group from $93.00 to $95.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 3rd. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Principal Financial Group from $85.00 to $87.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a report on Friday, April 24th. Bank of America decreased their price target on shares of Principal Financial Group from $96.00 to $92.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 14th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of Principal Financial Group from $91.00 to $87.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 10th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $95.33.

Principal Financial Group Company Profile

Principal Financial Group NASDAQ: PFG is a global financial services company headquartered in Des Moines, Iowa, that provides a range of retirement, investment and insurance solutions to individuals, employers and institutional clients. The firm's business is organized around retirement services, asset management, and insurance products designed to help clients plan, invest for, and protect income over the long term.

Principal's product and service offerings include retirement plan recordkeeping and administration for employer-sponsored plans, individual and group retirement annuities, life and disability insurance, employee benefits solutions, and wealth management services.

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