Bank of Montreal Can Sells 250,331 Shares of Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG)

Bank of Montreal Can trimmed its holdings in Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG) by 49.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 253,404 shares of the company’s stock after selling 250,331 shares during the quarter. Bank of Montreal Can’s holdings in Principal Financial Group were worth $19,616,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of PFG. Norges Bank bought a new position in Principal Financial Group in the 4th quarter valued at $217,021,000. Amundi boosted its stake in shares of Principal Financial Group by 24.1% during the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 1,359,779 shares of the company’s stock valued at $106,511,000 after purchasing an additional 264,383 shares during the period. KBC Group NV boosted its stake in shares of Principal Financial Group by 398.4% during the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 291,379 shares of the company’s stock valued at $22,555,000 after purchasing an additional 232,915 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in shares of Principal Financial Group in the fourth quarter worth about $15,821,000. Finally, Quantbot Technologies LP increased its stake in Principal Financial Group by 2,064.3% in the 4th quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP now owns 148,299 shares of the company’s stock worth $11,480,000 after buying an additional 141,447 shares during the period. 75.08% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Principal Financial Group Stock Performance

PFG stock opened at $72.61 on Friday. Principal Financial Group, Inc. has a one year low of $68.39 and a one year high of $91.98. The firm has a market cap of $16.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.87, a PEG ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a quick ratio of 0.30 and a current ratio of 0.29. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $82.79 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $83.08.

Principal Financial Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 12th were issued a $0.75 dividend. This is a positive change from Principal Financial Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.73. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.13%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 12th. Principal Financial Group’s payout ratio is currently 44.91%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on PFG shares. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Principal Financial Group from $87.00 to $93.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. BMO Capital Markets initiated coverage on Principal Financial Group in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $93.00 price target for the company. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on Principal Financial Group from $74.00 to $68.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday. Barclays decreased their target price on Principal Financial Group from $80.00 to $76.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Principal Financial Group from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $95.00 to $92.00 in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $84.69.

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.