Principal Financial Group (NYSE:PFG) Posts Earnings Results, Misses Expectations By $0.09 EPS

Principal Financial Group (NYSE:PFG) posted its earnings results on Thursday. The company reported $1.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.74 by ($0.09), Briefing.com reports. The firm had revenue of $4.05 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.68 billion. Principal Financial Group had a net margin of 8.70% and a return on equity of 15.25%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.48 earnings per share.

Principal Financial Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE PFG opened at $79.12 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $81.78 and a 200-day simple moving average of $77.45. The company has a quick ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 0.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. The stock has a market capitalization of $18.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.86 and a beta of 1.25. Principal Financial Group has a 52 week low of $65.17 and a 52 week high of $86.79.

Principal Financial Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 12th were paid a dividend of $0.69 per share. This represents a $2.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.49%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 11th. This is a boost from Principal Financial Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.67. Principal Financial Group’s payout ratio is 52.67%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have weighed in on PFG shares. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of Principal Financial Group from $81.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, April 15th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Principal Financial Group from $86.00 to $91.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on Principal Financial Group from $85.00 to $89.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on 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, 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 research note on Thursday, April 11th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and ten have assigned a hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $80.64.

Principal Financial Group announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback plan on Monday, February 12th that allows the company to repurchase $1.50 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to repurchase up to 7.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

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.