Principal Financial Group (NASDAQ:PFG) Sets New 52-Week High - Here's What Happened

Key Points

• New 52-week high: Principal Financial Group reached an intraday high of $103.00 and last traded at $101.55 on volume of 1,007,024 shares.
• Analysts show mixed sentiment—MarketBeat reports a consensus "Hold" rating with an average price target of $95.33, while recent targets range roughly from $87 to $108.
• Dividend and results: The firm raised its quarterly dividend to $0.82 (annualized $3.28, ~3.2% yield) and posted Q1 EPS of $2.07 (beat) despite revenue coming in below estimates.

Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:PFG - Get Free Report) reached a new 52-week high during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $103.00 and last traded at $101.55, with a volume of 1007024 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $100.87.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

PFG has been the subject of several recent research reports. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Principal Financial Group from a "buy (b)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Evercore set a $108.00 price objective on shares of Principal Financial Group in a research note on Monday, April 27th. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Principal Financial Group from $92.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 9th. Bank of America dropped their price objective on shares of Principal Financial Group from $96.00 to $92.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 14th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped 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 given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Principal Financial Group has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $95.33.

Principal Financial Group Stock Performance

The firm's 50-day moving average is $92.65 and its 200 day moving average is $89.63. The stock has a market cap of $21.94 billion, a PE ratio of 14.53, a P/E/G ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a current ratio of 0.27.

Principal Financial Group (NASDAQ:PFG - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The company reported $2.07 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 firm had revenue of $3.53 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.11 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.81 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Principal Financial Group, Inc. will post 9.31 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 26th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 1st will be paid a $0.82 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 1st. This represents a $3.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.2%. This is an increase from Principal Financial Group's previous quarterly dividend of $0.80. Principal Financial Group's dividend payout ratio is presently 45.78%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Principal Financial Group

In other Principal Financial Group news, insider Wee Yee Cheong sold 9,183 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $101.26, for a total value of $929,870.58. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 77,188 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,816,056.88. The trade was a 10.63% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, General Counsel George Djurasovic sold 2,571 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $100.83, for a total transaction of $259,233.93. Following the completion of the transaction, the general counsel directly owned 21,906 shares in the company, valued at $2,208,781.98. This represents a 10.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 17,572 shares of company stock worth $1,776,769 over the last three months. 1.13% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Principal Financial Group

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Bank of America Corp DE grew its stake in shares of Principal Financial Group by 9.6% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 12,370,852 shares of the company's stock worth $982,617,000 after purchasing an additional 1,083,991 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. grew its stake in Principal Financial Group by 23.2% in the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 3,376,797 shares of the company's stock valued at $279,970,000 after acquiring an additional 636,334 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Principal Financial Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $273,276,000. Morgan Stanley grew its stake in Principal Financial Group by 1.8% in the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 3,079,857 shares of the company's stock valued at $271,674,000 after acquiring an additional 55,669 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Principal Financial Group by 5.7% in the 4th quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 2,498,766 shares of the company's stock valued at $220,416,000 after purchasing an additional 135,631 shares in the last quarter. 75.08% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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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