Principal Financial Group (NYSE:PFG) Rating Increased to Neutral at JPMorgan Chase & Co.

Principal Financial Group (NYSE:PFG) was upgraded by investment analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from an “underweight” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report issued on Tuesday, Marketbeat reports. The brokerage presently has a $96.00 price target on the stock, up from their prior price target of $88.00. JPMorgan Chase & Co.‘s price objective indicates a potential upside of 21.27% from the company’s previous close.

PFG has been the subject of a number of other research reports. Piper Sandler increased their price objective on shares of Principal Financial Group from $85.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, April 5th. Morgan Stanley increased 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. Evercore ISI increased their price objective 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. 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 for the company in a research note on Monday, April 29th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on shares of Principal Financial Group from $74.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, June 28th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and ten have assigned a hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Principal Financial Group presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $82.60.

Principal Financial Group Price Performance

Shares of Principal Financial Group stock opened at $79.16 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 0.29 and a quick ratio of 0.29. Principal Financial Group has a fifty-two week low of $66.21 and a fifty-two week high of $86.79. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $80.82 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $80.57. The company has a market cap of $18.55 billion, a PE ratio of 15.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.85 and a beta of 1.21.

Principal Financial Group (NYSE:PFG) last issued its quarterly 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). Principal Financial Group had a net margin of 8.70% and a return on equity of 15.06%. The company had revenue of $4.05 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.68 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.48 earnings per share. Analysts expect that Principal Financial Group will post 7.45 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of PFG. Spire Wealth Management boosted its stake 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 purchasing an additional 225 shares during the last quarter. EdgeRock Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Principal Financial Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. Fortis Group Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Principal Financial Group in the 3rd quarter valued at about $33,000. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of Principal Financial Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $33,000. Finally, Riverview Trust Co bought a new position in shares of Principal Financial Group in the 1st quarter valued at about $34,000. Institutional investors own 75.08% of the company’s stock.

Principal Financial Group Company 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.