Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG) Shares Purchased by Syon Capital LLC

Syon Capital LLC boosted its stake in shares of Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG) by 36.2% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 5,487 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 1,457 shares during the period. Syon Capital LLC’s holdings in Principal Financial Group were worth $432,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of PFG. Merit Financial Group LLC grew its stake in shares of Principal Financial Group by 2.3% during the 3rd quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 6,947 shares of the company’s stock worth $501,000 after purchasing an additional 153 shares during the period. Comerica Bank purchased a new stake in Principal Financial Group during the third quarter worth $4,667,000. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd boosted its holdings in Principal Financial Group by 15.8% during the fourth quarter. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd now owns 277,157 shares of the company’s stock worth $21,804,000 after buying an additional 37,836 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its position in Principal Financial Group by 15.0% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 4,423,975 shares of the company’s stock valued at $318,836,000 after buying an additional 575,646 shares during the period. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its holdings in Principal Financial Group by 1,218.9% in the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 250,602 shares of the company’s stock valued at $19,715,000 after buying an additional 231,601 shares in the last quarter. 75.08% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

PFG has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Piper Sandler increased their target price on shares of Principal Financial Group from $85.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, April 5th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Principal Financial Group from $81.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, April 15th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on Principal Financial Group from $85.00 to $89.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. Evercore ISI upped their target price on Principal Financial Group from $84.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Principal Financial Group from $86.00 to $91.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and ten have given a hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $80.64.

Principal Financial Group Stock Down 2.4 %

Shares of PFG opened at $79.12 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $81.78 and a 200 day moving average price of $77.45. Principal Financial Group, Inc. has a one year low of $65.17 and a one year high of $86.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a quick ratio of 0.30 and a current ratio of 0.30. The stock has a market capitalization of $18.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.10, a PEG ratio of 0.86 and a beta of 1.25.

Principal Financial Group (NYSE:PFG) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The company reported $1.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.74 by ($0.09). The business had revenue of $4.05 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.68 billion. Principal Financial Group had a return on equity of 15.25% and a net margin of 8.70%. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.48 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Principal Financial Group, Inc. will post 7.6 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Principal Financial Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 28th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 12th were paid a dividend of $0.69 per share. This represents a $2.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.49%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 11th. This is a boost from Principal Financial Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.67. Principal Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 52.67%.

Principal Financial Group declared that its board has authorized a share buyback program on Monday, February 12th that allows the company to repurchase $1.50 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to purchase up to 7.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are generally a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

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 Asset Management, and Benefits and Protection segments. The Retirement and Income Solutions segment provides retirement, and related financial products and services.