Principal Financial Group, Inc. $PFG Shares Purchased by HBK Sorce Advisory LLC

HBK Sorce Advisory LLC increased its position in Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG) by 481.3% in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 15,241 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 12,619 shares during the period. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC’s holdings in Principal Financial Group were worth $1,246,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in PFG. Kingstone Capital Partners Texas LLC acquired a new position in Principal Financial Group in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $3,269,000. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd boosted its holdings in shares of Principal Financial Group by 3.4% in the 2nd quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd now owns 25,037 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,989,000 after acquiring an additional 814 shares during the last quarter. LVW Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Principal Financial Group in the second quarter worth $297,000. Capital Fund Management S.A. purchased a new position in shares of Principal Financial Group during the second quarter worth $1,486,000. Finally, Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio lifted its position in Principal Financial Group by 3.5% during the second quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio now owns 72,348 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,747,000 after purchasing an additional 2,469 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.08% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Principal Financial Group

In other Principal Financial Group news, EVP Wee Yee Cheong sold 1,887 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.04, for a total transaction of $160,470.48. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 81,421 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,924,041.84. This represents a 2.27% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 1.08% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Principal Financial Group Stock Performance

NYSE:PFG opened at $89.59 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 stock has a market capitalization of $19.96 billion, a PE ratio of 13.41, a P/E/G ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 0.89. Principal Financial Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $68.39 and a fifty-two week high of $92.10. The company has a fifty day moving average of $84.52 and a two-hundred day moving average of $81.41.

Principal Financial Group (NYSE:PFG) last announced its earnings results on Monday, October 27th. The company reported $2.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.20 by $0.12. Principal Financial Group had a net margin of 9.74% and a return on equity of 14.68%. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.05 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast 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 disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 19th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, December 3rd were paid a dividend of $0.79 per share. This is an increase from Principal Financial Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.78. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, December 3rd. This represents a $3.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.5%. Principal Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 46.00%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on Principal Financial Group from $92.00 to $94.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 9th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Principal Financial Group from $73.00 to $74.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 29th. Morgan Stanley set a $93.00 price objective on Principal Financial Group in a research report on Monday, December 15th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on shares of Principal Financial Group from $90.00 to $91.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 30th. Finally, Piper Sandler increased their price target on shares of Principal Financial Group from $94.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $90.70.

Principal Financial Group Profile

Principal Financial Group, commonly known as Principal, is a global financial services company headquartered in Des Moines, Iowa. The firm provides a broad range of retirement, investment management and insurance solutions for individual, employer and institutional clients. Its core businesses include retirement plan services and recordkeeping, asset management, and life and disability insurance, supported by distribution through employers, financial advisors and direct channels.

On the retirement side, Principal offers 401(k) and other workplace retirement plans, individual retirement accounts and annuity products designed to help clients accumulate and manage retirement savings.