Sunbelt Securities Inc. Grows Holdings in Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG)

Sunbelt Securities Inc. lifted its holdings in Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG) by 38.7% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 9,877 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,757 shares during the quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc.’s holdings in Principal Financial Group were worth $775,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. EdgeRock Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Principal Financial Group in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC bought a new stake in shares of Principal Financial Group in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $32,000. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Principal Financial Group in the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. Family Firm Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Principal Financial Group in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $33,000. Finally, Riverview Trust Co bought a new stake in shares of Principal Financial Group in the 1st quarter worth approximately $34,000. 75.08% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. Raymond James upgraded shares of Principal Financial Group from a “market perform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and set a $99.00 price target for the company in a report on Tuesday, July 9th. Barclays assumed coverage on shares of Principal Financial Group in a report on Wednesday, September 4th. They set an “underweight” rating and a $74.00 price target for the company. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on shares of Principal Financial Group from $87.00 to $85.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, July 29th. Bank of America upped their price target on shares of Principal Financial Group from $87.00 to $94.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, July 11th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on shares of Principal Financial Group from $85.00 to $83.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 19th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $85.50.

Principal Financial Group Stock Down 0.2 %

NYSE:PFG opened at $85.90 on Tuesday. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $80.20 and its 200-day moving average price is $81.22. The company has a market capitalization of $19.89 billion, a PE ratio of 16.39, a P/E/G ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 1.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 0.29 and a quick ratio of 0.29. Principal Financial Group, Inc. has a 1-year low of $66.21 and a 1-year high of $88.26.

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

Principal Financial Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 27th. Investors of record on Thursday, September 5th were given a dividend of $0.72 per share. This represents a $2.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.35%. This is an increase from Principal Financial Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.71. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, September 5th. Principal Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio is 54.96%.

About Principal Financial Group

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.