Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. Acquires 18,801 Shares of Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG)

Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG) by 1.4% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,403,689 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 18,801 shares during the quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Principal Financial Group were worth $120,577,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Blackhawk Capital Partners LLC. bought a new stake in shares of Principal Financial Group in the 3rd quarter valued at about $209,000. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its stake in shares of Principal Financial Group by 85.6% in the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 466,133 shares of the company’s stock worth $40,041,000 after acquiring an additional 215,045 shares during the period. Prospera Private Wealth LLC bought a new stake in Principal Financial Group in the third quarter valued at approximately $45,000. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. Holding AG acquired a new stake in Principal Financial Group during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $2,441,000. Finally, S&CO Inc. bought a new position in Principal Financial Group during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $214,000. 75.08% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently commented on PFG. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on shares of Principal Financial Group from $87.00 to $91.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Barclays increased their price target on Principal Financial Group from $75.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. Bank of America dropped their price objective on Principal Financial Group from $94.00 to $91.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on Principal Financial Group from $85.00 to $83.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 19th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Principal Financial Group from $85.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Principal Financial Group currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $85.92.

Principal Financial Group Stock Performance

Shares of PFG stock opened at $87.04 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.30, a quick ratio of 0.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $86.22 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $82.37. Principal Financial Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $71.39 and a 12 month high of $91.97. The firm has a market capitalization of $19.91 billion, a PE ratio of -96.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.00 and a beta of 1.20.

Principal Financial Group (NYSE:PFG) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The company reported $1.76 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.02 by ($0.26). Principal Financial Group had a positive return on equity of 14.67% and a negative net margin of 1.47%. The business had revenue of $3.01 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.92 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.72 earnings per share. Analysts forecast that Principal Financial Group, Inc. will post 7.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Principal Financial Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 18th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 2nd will be issued a $0.73 dividend. This represents a $2.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.35%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 2nd. This is a positive change from Principal Financial Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.72. Principal Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -320.00%.

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.