Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG) Shares Acquired by Exchange Traded Concepts LLC

Exchange Traded Concepts LLC lifted its position in shares of Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG) by 2,192.3% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,980 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,850 shares during the quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC’s holdings in Principal Financial Group were worth $256,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Capital Research Global Investors grew its stake in Principal Financial Group by 2.4% in the 1st quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 6,602,298 shares of the company’s stock valued at $569,844,000 after acquiring an additional 152,774 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its stake in Principal Financial Group by 1.0% in the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,905,124 shares of the company’s stock valued at $306,393,000 after acquiring an additional 39,854 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its stake in Principal Financial Group by 2.9% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,903,138 shares of the company’s stock valued at $149,301,000 after acquiring an additional 53,516 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. grew its stake in Principal Financial Group by 6.6% in the 1st quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. now owns 692,694 shares of the company’s stock valued at $59,786,000 after acquiring an additional 43,190 shares during the period. Finally, Rhumbline Advisers grew its stake in Principal Financial Group by 0.5% in the 2nd quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 478,129 shares of the company’s stock valued at $37,509,000 after acquiring an additional 2,487 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.08% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of Principal Financial Group from an “underweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $88.00 to $96.00 in a research note on Tuesday, July 2nd. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on Principal Financial Group from $83.00 to $87.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Monday, July 29th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Principal Financial Group from $85.00 to $86.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on Principal Financial Group from $85.00 to $83.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, August 19th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on Principal Financial Group from $73.00 to $76.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, July 18th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $85.42.

Principal Financial Group Stock Down 0.9 %

NYSE PFG opened at $90.46 on Monday. Principal Financial Group, Inc. has a 52 week low of $66.21 and a 52 week high of $91.97. The company has a quick ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 0.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $82.75 and its 200-day simple moving average is $81.54. The firm has a market cap of $20.95 billion, a PE ratio of 17.57, a P/E/G ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 1.19.

Principal Financial Group (NYSE:PFG) last posted its quarterly earnings results 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 return on equity of 14.92% and a net margin of 8.05%. The company had revenue of $4.31 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.78 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.53 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Principal Financial Group, Inc. will post 7.31 earnings per share for the current year.

Principal Financial Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 27th. Investors of record on Thursday, September 5th were issued a $0.72 dividend. This is a positive change from Principal Financial Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.71. This represents a $2.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.18%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, September 5th. Principal Financial Group’s payout ratio is 55.92%.

Principal Financial Group 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.