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

International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG) by 9,002.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 163,383 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 161,588 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC owned 0.07% of Principal Financial Group worth $12,853,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its stake in shares of Principal Financial Group by 15.0% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 4,423,975 shares of the company’s stock valued at $318,836,000 after acquiring an additional 575,646 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp increased its position in shares of Principal Financial Group by 0.4% during the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 3,920,915 shares of the company’s stock worth $282,580,000 after acquiring an additional 16,052 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. grew its stake in Principal Financial Group by 12.6% during the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 2,231,757 shares of the company’s stock valued at $160,843,000 after purchasing an additional 249,127 shares in the last quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC raised its position in shares of Principal Financial Group by 60.5% in the 3rd quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 1,210,985 shares of the company’s stock valued at $87,305,000 after purchasing an additional 456,455 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Deutsche Bank AG raised its holdings in Principal Financial Group by 5.4% in the third quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 653,258 shares of the company’s stock valued at $47,080,000 after acquiring an additional 33,462 shares in the last quarter. 75.08% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Principal Financial Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:PFG opened at $81.21 on Monday. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $81.79 and its two-hundred day moving average is $77.88. Principal Financial Group, Inc. has a 52 week low of $65.17 and a 52 week high of $86.79. The firm has a market capitalization of $19.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.50, a PEG ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 1.24. The company has a current ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35.

Principal Financial Group (NYSE:PFG) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The company reported $1.65 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.74 by ($0.09). The business had revenue of $4.05 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.68 billion. Principal Financial Group had a return on equity of 15.06% and a net margin of 8.70%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.48 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that Principal Financial Group, Inc. will post 7.5 earnings per share for the current year.

Principal Financial Group declared that its board has approved a share repurchase program on Monday, February 12th that permits the company to repurchase $1.50 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to reacquire up to 7.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are generally a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Principal Financial Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 28th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 12th were issued a dividend of $0.69 per share. This represents a $2.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.40%. This is a boost from Principal Financial Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.67. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 11th. Principal Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 52.67%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have issued reports on PFG. Piper Sandler upped their price objective on Principal Financial Group from $85.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, April 5th. Evercore ISI lifted their price target on shares of Principal Financial Group from $84.00 to $86.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a report on Thursday, April 11th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Principal Financial Group from $91.00 to $85.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 29th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on shares of Principal Financial Group from $75.00 to $83.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 14th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on shares of Principal Financial Group from $85.00 to $89.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and nine have issued a hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $80.30.

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.