Principal Financial Group (NASDAQ:PFG) Price Target Raised to $107.00

Principal Financial Group (NASDAQ:PFG) had its target price lifted by equities researchers at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $106.00 to $107.00 in a research report issued on Monday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a “neutral” rating on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.‘s price objective indicates a potential downside of 7.29% from the stock’s previous close.

Other equities research analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Principal Financial Group in a research note on Wednesday. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of Principal Financial Group from $114.00 to $113.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Barclays lifted their price target on Principal Financial Group from $87.00 to $92.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th. Citigroup lowered Principal Financial Group from a “sell” rating to an “underperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 24th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on shares of Principal Financial Group from $91.00 to $98.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, July 10th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $105.83.

Principal Financial Group Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ PFG traded up $1.72 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $115.42. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 214,420 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,527,726. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a quick ratio of 0.28 and a current ratio of 0.28. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $109.18 and its 200-day moving average price is $99.21. Principal Financial Group has a 1-year low of $75.33 and a 1-year high of $115.71. The firm has a market cap of $24.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.38, a P/E/G ratio of 1.04 and a beta of 0.88.

Principal Financial Group (NASDAQ:PFG) last posted its earnings results on Monday, July 27th. The company reported $2.50 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.33 by $0.17. The company had revenue of $3.99 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.11 billion. Principal Financial Group had a return on equity of 16.49% and a net margin of 9.93%.During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.16 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Principal Financial Group will post 9.51 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Wee Yee Cheong sold 7,534 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.16, for a total value of $777,207.44. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 66,443 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,854,259.88. This represents a 10.18% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 1.13% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Principal Financial Group

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Annex Advisory Services LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Principal Financial Group during the 2nd quarter valued at about $241,000. Tema ETFs LLC raised its holdings in shares of Principal Financial Group by 8.2% during the 2nd quarter. Tema ETFs LLC now owns 5,716 shares of the company’s stock valued at $616,000 after purchasing an additional 435 shares in the last quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB raised its holdings in Principal Financial Group by 72.8% during the second quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 29,084 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,135,000 after buying an additional 12,250 shares in the last quarter. City Holding Co. boosted its stake in shares of Principal Financial Group by 83.6% during the 2nd quarter. City Holding Co. now owns 964 shares of the company’s stock worth $104,000 after acquiring an additional 439 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fulton Bank N.A. increased its holdings in shares of Principal Financial Group by 13.3% during the 2nd quarter. Fulton Bank N.A. now owns 9,665 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,042,000 after acquiring an additional 1,134 shares during the last quarter. 75.08% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Principal Financial Group Company Profile

Principal Financial Group (NASDAQ: PFG) is a global financial services company headquartered in Des Moines, Iowa, that provides a range of retirement, investment and insurance solutions to individuals, employers and institutional clients. The firm’s business is organized around retirement services, asset management, and insurance products designed to help clients plan, invest for, and protect income over the long term.

Principal’s product and service offerings include retirement plan recordkeeping and administration for employer-sponsored plans, individual and group retirement annuities, life and disability insurance, employee benefits solutions, and wealth management services.