The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company Buys Shares of 99,106 Principal Financial Group, Inc. $PFG

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company purchased a new position in Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:PFG) during the second quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor purchased 99,106 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,682,000.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. DV Equities LLC acquired a new position in Principal Financial Group in the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Hilton Head Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Principal Financial Group during the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Principal Financial Group in the first quarter valued at about $27,000. MBM Wealth Consultants LLC purchased a new position in shares of Principal Financial Group in the first quarter worth about $28,000. Finally, Signature Equity Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of Principal Financial Group by 5,733.3% in the first quarter. Signature Equity Partners LLC now owns 350 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 344 shares in the last quarter. 75.08% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Principal Financial Group Price Performance

NASDAQ:PFG opened at $111.41 on Friday. Principal Financial Group, Inc. has a 52 week low of $77.90 and a 52 week high of $116.61. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $111.84 and its two-hundred day moving average is $102.02. The company has a market capitalization of $23.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.83, a P/E/G ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 0.88. The company has a quick ratio of 0.28, a current ratio of 0.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36.

Principal Financial Group (NASDAQ:PFG) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, July 27th. The company reported $2.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.33 by $0.17. The firm had revenue of $3.99 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate 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 last year, the company earned $2.16 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Principal Financial Group, Inc. will post 9.62 EPS for the current year.

Principal Financial Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 25th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, September 3rd will be given a dividend of $0.84 per share. This is a boost from Principal Financial Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.82. This represents a $3.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.0%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, September 3rd. Principal Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 46.59%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently issued reports on PFG shares. Wells Fargo & Company dropped 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 research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on Principal Financial Group from $102.00 to $112.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, July 13th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Principal Financial Group from $107.00 to $112.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, July 6th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on Principal Financial Group from $91.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, July 10th. Finally, Barclays boosted their price objective on Principal Financial Group from $87.00 to $92.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 7th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $106.67.

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.