Principal Financial Group (NASDAQ:PFG) Shares Up 1.4% - Should You Buy?

Key Points

• Principal Financial Group's share price increased by 1.4% to close at $81.30, with a trading volume of 1,001,406 shares, which is 8% lower than the average.
• Wall Street analysts upgraded the company's rating from "sell" to "hold," reflecting a more positive outlook on the stock.
• The firm announced an increase in its quarterly dividend to $0.78 per share, yielding 3.8%, which marks a rise from the previous $0.76 dividend.

Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:PFG - Get Free Report)'s share price shot up 1.4% during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $81.34 and last traded at $81.30. 1,001,406 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 8% from the average session volume of 1,087,824 shares. The stock had previously closed at $80.18.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, Wall Street Zen upgraded Principal Financial Group from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, July 26th.

Principal Financial Group Price Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $17.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 1.03. The stock's fifty day moving average is $79.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a current ratio of 0.27 and a quick ratio of 0.27.

Principal Financial Group (NASDAQ:PFG - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Monday, July 28th. The company reported $2.16 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.98 by $0.18. Principal Financial Group had a return on equity of 15.63% and a net margin of 7.53%.The business had revenue of $3.69 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4 billion.

Principal Financial Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 26th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, September 4th will be given a $0.78 dividend. This represents a $3.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.9%. This is a positive change from Principal Financial Group's previous quarterly dividend of $0.76. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, September 4th. Principal Financial Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 62.78%.

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 Global Investors, Principal International, and U.S. Insurance Solutions segments.