Wedmont Private Capital Cuts Position in Principal Financial Group, Inc. $PFG

Wedmont Private Capital reduced its holdings in shares of Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG) by 7.2% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,886 shares of the company’s stock after selling 223 shares during the quarter. Wedmont Private Capital’s holdings in Principal Financial Group were worth $233,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. von Borstel & Associates Inc. purchased a new position in Principal Financial Group during the 1st quarter valued at about $32,000. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT purchased a new position in Principal Financial Group during the 1st quarter valued at about $34,000. Ameriflex Group Inc. purchased a new position in Principal Financial Group during the 4th quarter valued at about $37,000. GKV Capital Management Co. Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Principal Financial Group during the first quarter worth about $45,000. Finally, MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Principal Financial Group during the first quarter worth about $46,000. 75.08% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Morgan Stanley lifted 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 Monday, August 18th. Piper Sandler lifted their price target on shares of Principal Financial Group from $88.00 to $89.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 3rd. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Principal Financial Group from $76.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Monday, July 7th. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Principal Financial Group from $85.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 29th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Principal Financial Group from $92.00 to $101.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Principal Financial Group has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $86.90.

Principal Financial Group Trading Down 0.1%

Shares of PFG stock opened at $81.71 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $18.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 1.03. The company has a quick ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 0.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. Principal Financial Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $68.39 and a fifty-two week high of $91.97. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $79.47 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $78.73.

Principal Financial Group (NYSE:PFG) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 28th. The company reported $2.16 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.97 by $0.19. Principal Financial Group had a net margin of 9.74% and a return on equity of 14.68%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.63 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Principal Financial Group, Inc. will post 8.5 EPS for the current year.

Principal Financial Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 26th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, September 4th will be given a dividend of $0.78 per share. This represents a $3.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.8%. This is a positive change from Principal Financial Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.76. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, September 4th. Principal Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 62.78%.

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.