Siemens Fonds Invest GmbH Reduces Position in Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG)

Siemens Fonds Invest GmbH decreased its holdings in shares of Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG) by 84.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 3,661 shares of the company’s stock after selling 20,378 shares during the period. Siemens Fonds Invest GmbH’s holdings in Principal Financial Group were worth $283,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of PFG. Leavell Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in Principal Financial Group by 5.4% during the fourth quarter. Leavell Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,693 shares of the company’s stock valued at $208,000 after purchasing an additional 138 shares during the period. CENTRAL TRUST Co grew its stake in shares of Principal Financial Group by 9.6% during the 4th quarter. CENTRAL TRUST Co now owns 1,730 shares of the company’s stock valued at $134,000 after acquiring an additional 151 shares during the period. Cidel Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in Principal Financial Group by 6.3% in the 4th quarter. Cidel Asset Management Inc. now owns 2,636 shares of the company’s stock worth $204,000 after acquiring an additional 156 shares in the last quarter. Hartford Funds Management Co LLC raised its stake in Principal Financial Group by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Hartford Funds Management Co LLC now owns 11,241 shares of the company’s stock worth $870,000 after acquiring an additional 161 shares during the period. Finally, Argent Trust Co raised its stake in Principal Financial Group by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. Argent Trust Co now owns 29,345 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,272,000 after acquiring an additional 161 shares during the period. 75.08% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Principal Financial Group Stock Up 1.1%

Shares of NYSE:PFG opened at $78.55 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $17.61 billion, a PE ratio of 11.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 1.01. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $77.20 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $80.75. Principal Financial Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $68.39 and a 1 year high of $91.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 0.29 and a quick ratio of 0.30.

Principal Financial Group (NYSE:PFG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 28th. The company reported $1.81 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.83 by ($0.02). Principal Financial Group had a net margin of 9.74% and a return on equity of 14.68%. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.65 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Principal Financial Group, Inc. will post 8.5 EPS for the current year.

Principal Financial Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 27th. Investors of record on Monday, June 2nd will be issued a dividend of $0.76 per share. This is a positive change from Principal Financial Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 2nd. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.87%. Principal Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 65.10%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on PFG. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on shares of Principal Financial Group from $86.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of Principal Financial Group from $67.00 to $71.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Monday, May 19th. Barclays decreased their price target on Principal Financial Group from $80.00 to $76.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 11th. UBS Group dropped their price objective on 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. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Principal Financial Group from $68.00 to $69.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 29th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $83.85.

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.