Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG) Shares Acquired by Merit Financial Group LLC

Merit Financial Group LLC lifted its holdings in Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG) by 19.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 7,090 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,177 shares during the quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC’s holdings in Principal Financial Group were worth $549,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its holdings in Principal Financial Group by 85.6% in the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 466,133 shares of the company’s stock valued at $40,041,000 after purchasing an additional 215,045 shares during the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can boosted its stake in shares of Principal Financial Group by 41.0% in the third quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 503,735 shares of the company’s stock worth $43,367,000 after buying an additional 146,473 shares during the last quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC grew its holdings in Principal Financial Group by 818.1% during the third quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC now owns 152,648 shares of the company’s stock worth $13,112,000 after acquiring an additional 136,021 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in Principal Financial Group by 6,593.7% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 132,200 shares of the company’s stock worth $11,356,000 after acquiring an additional 130,225 shares during the period. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its position in Principal Financial Group by 5.1% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 2,462,562 shares of the company’s stock valued at $211,534,000 after acquiring an additional 118,722 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.08% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have commented on the company. BMO Capital Markets initiated coverage on Principal Financial Group in a research report on Thursday. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $93.00 price objective on the stock. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Principal Financial Group from $75.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. Bank of America cut their price objective on shares of Principal Financial Group from $94.00 to $91.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and set a $91.00 target price on shares of Principal Financial Group in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. Finally, Morgan Stanley restated an “underweight” rating and issued a $80.00 price target (down previously from $86.00) on shares of Principal Financial Group in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $84.92.

Principal Financial Group Price Performance

NYSE:PFG opened at $81.87 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $81.05 and a two-hundred day moving average of $82.24. Principal Financial Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $72.21 and a 12 month high of $91.97. The firm has a market cap of $18.73 billion, a P/E ratio of -90.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.81 and a beta of 1.22. The company has a current ratio of 0.30, a quick ratio of 0.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35.

Principal Financial Group (NYSE:PFG) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The company reported $1.76 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.02 by ($0.26). The firm had revenue of $3.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.92 billion. Principal Financial Group had a positive return on equity of 14.67% and a negative net margin of 1.47%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.72 earnings per share. On average, analysts expect that Principal Financial Group, Inc. will post 7.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.