DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale Has $6.19 Million Stake in Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG)

DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale increased its stake in Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG) by 2.6% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 78,575 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,960 shares during the quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale’s holdings in Principal Financial Group were worth $6,190,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC grew its holdings in Principal Financial Group by 3.2% in the 4th quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 18,771 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,477,000 after buying an additional 579 shares during the last quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. increased its position in Principal Financial Group by 59.9% during the fourth quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 40,787 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,209,000 after acquiring an additional 15,277 shares during the period. Independent Advisor Alliance raised its stake in Principal Financial Group by 11.4% during the 4th quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance now owns 5,130 shares of the company’s stock valued at $404,000 after purchasing an additional 524 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Principal Financial Group in the 4th quarter valued at $253,990,000. Finally, UBS Group AG grew its position in Principal Financial Group by 37.6% in the 4th quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 364,652 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,687,000 after purchasing an additional 99,671 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 75.08% of the company’s stock.

Principal Financial Group Price Performance

Shares of Principal Financial Group stock opened at $83.82 on Wednesday. Principal Financial Group, Inc. has a 1-year low of $66.21 and a 1-year high of $88.26. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $80.14 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $80.90. The company has a current ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. The stock has a market capitalization of $19.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.00, a P/E/G ratio of 0.84 and a beta of 1.19.

Principal Financial Group (NYSE:PFG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The company reported $1.63 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.87 by ($0.24). The business had revenue of $4.31 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.78 billion. Principal Financial Group had a net margin of 8.05% and a return on equity of 14.92%. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.53 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Principal Financial Group, Inc. will post 7.31 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Principal Financial Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 27th. Investors of record on Thursday, September 5th will be given a dividend of $0.72 per share. This is an increase from Principal Financial Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.71. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, September 5th. This represents a $2.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.44%. Principal Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio is 54.96%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of Principal Financial Group from $87.00 to $85.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, July 29th. Barclays began coverage on Principal Financial Group in a report on Wednesday, September 4th. They set an “underweight” rating and a $74.00 price objective on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Principal Financial Group from an “underweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $88.00 to $96.00 in a research report on Tuesday, July 2nd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price target on shares of Principal Financial Group from $88.00 to $86.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, July 30th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on shares of Principal Financial Group from $83.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Monday, July 29th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $85.50.

Principal Financial Group Company 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.