Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG) Shares Sold by Royal London Asset Management Ltd.

Royal London Asset Management Ltd. trimmed its holdings in Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG) by 1.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 170,536 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,458 shares during the quarter. Royal London Asset Management Ltd. owned about 0.07% of Principal Financial Group worth $13,416,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Spire Wealth Management boosted its holdings in shares of Principal Financial Group by 152.0% in the 4th quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 373 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 225 shares in the last quarter. EdgeRock Capital LLC acquired a new position in Principal Financial Group in the fourth quarter valued at $31,000. Fortis Group Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Principal Financial Group during the third quarter worth about $33,000. PrairieView Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Principal Financial Group during the fourth quarter worth about $39,000. Finally, Anchor Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Principal Financial Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $40,000. 75.08% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Principal Financial Group Stock Performance

NYSE:PFG traded down $0.71 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $76.66. The stock had a trading volume of 918,276 shares, compared to its average volume of 884,376. Principal Financial Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $66.21 and a twelve month high of $86.79. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $81.14 and a 200 day simple moving average of $80.25. The firm has a market capitalization of $17.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.63, a PEG ratio of 0.82 and a beta of 1.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 0.29 and a current ratio of 0.29.

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

Principal Financial Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 27th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 3rd will be paid a dividend of $0.71 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 3rd. This is a boost from Principal Financial Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.69. This represents a $2.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.70%. Principal Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio is 54.20%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

PFG has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Evercore ISI lifted their price target on Principal Financial Group from $84.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Piper Sandler increased their price target on shares of Principal Financial Group from $85.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, April 5th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of Principal Financial Group from $81.00 to $82.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, April 15th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price 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. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on Principal Financial Group from $91.00 to $85.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 29th. Two investment 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, Principal Financial Group has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price 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.