International Assets Investment Management LLC Grows Stake in Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG)

International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its stake in Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG) by 6,593.7% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 132,200 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 130,225 shares during the quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC owned about 0.06% of Principal Financial Group worth $11,356,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. EdgeRock Capital LLC purchased a new position in Principal Financial Group in the second quarter valued at about $26,000. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC purchased a new position in Principal Financial Group in the second quarter valued at about $32,000. Family Firm Inc. purchased a new position in Principal Financial Group in the second quarter valued at about $33,000. Salomon & Ludwin LLC raised its position in Principal Financial Group by 319.3% in the first quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 499 shares of the company’s stock valued at $43,000 after purchasing an additional 380 shares during the period. Finally, Innealta Capital LLC purchased a new position in Principal Financial Group in the second quarter valued at about $43,000. 75.08% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on PFG. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on Principal Financial Group from $83.00 to $87.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Monday, July 29th. Citigroup raised their target price on Principal Financial Group from $68.00 to $70.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd. Raymond James upgraded Principal Financial Group from a “market perform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and set a $99.00 target price for the company in a research note on Tuesday, July 9th. Bank of America lowered their target price on Principal Financial Group from $94.00 to $91.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, Barclays raised their target price on Principal Financial Group from $75.00 to $77.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $85.58.

Principal Financial Group Stock Up 0.4 %

NYSE:PFG opened at $84.46 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $19.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.88 and a beta of 1.19. Principal Financial Group, Inc. has a one year low of $66.71 and a one year high of $91.97. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $84.40 and a 200 day simple moving average of $81.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 0.29 and a current ratio of 0.27.

Principal Financial Group (NYSE:PFG) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The company reported $1.76 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.02 by ($0.26). Principal Financial Group had a positive return on equity of 14.67% and a negative net margin of 1.47%. The firm had revenue of $3.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.92 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.72 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Principal Financial Group, Inc. will post 7.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Principal Financial Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 18th. Investors of record on Monday, December 2nd will be issued a $0.73 dividend. This is an increase from Principal Financial Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.72. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 2nd. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.46%. Principal Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 55.73%.

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.