Plimoth Trust Co. LLC Sells 185 Shares of Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG)

Plimoth Trust Co. LLC trimmed its holdings in Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG) by 2.4% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 7,668 shares of the company’s stock after selling 185 shares during the quarter. Plimoth Trust Co. LLC’s holdings in Principal Financial Group were worth $647,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Curio Wealth LLC bought a new stake in Principal Financial Group in the fourth quarter worth approximately $29,000. BankPlus Trust Department bought a new position in shares of Principal Financial Group during the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. Navigoe LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Principal Financial Group during the 4th quarter worth approximately $37,000. Ameriflex Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Principal Financial Group during the 4th quarter worth approximately $37,000. Finally, Covestor Ltd increased its stake in shares of Principal Financial Group by 144.3% in the 4th quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 540 shares of the company’s stock valued at $42,000 after acquiring an additional 319 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 75.08% of the company’s stock.

Principal Financial Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE PFG opened at $75.97 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a quick ratio of 0.30 and a current ratio of 0.29. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $76.41 and its 200 day simple moving average is $79.83. The stock has a market cap of $17.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.37, a PEG ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 1.00. Principal Financial Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $68.39 and a fifty-two week high of $91.98.

Principal Financial Group (NYSE:PFG) last posted its earnings results on Monday, April 28th. The company reported $1.81 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates 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 business posted $1.65 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Principal Financial Group, Inc. will post 8.5 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 27th. Investors of record on Monday, June 2nd will be given a dividend of $0.76 per share. This is a positive change from Principal Financial Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.00%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 2nd. Principal Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 65.10%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

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

Principal Financial Group Profile

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.