Insider Selling: Principal Financial Group (NASDAQ:PFG) Insider Sells 9,183 Shares of Stock

Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:PFG) insider Wee Yee Cheong sold 9,183 shares of Principal Financial Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $101.26, for a total transaction of $929,870.58. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 77,188 shares in the company, valued at $7,816,056.88. This trade represents a 10.63% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink.

Wee Yee Cheong also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Wednesday, April 29th, Wee Yee Cheong sold 1,080 shares of Principal Financial Group stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $101.00, for a total transaction of $109,080.00.

Principal Financial Group Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:PFG traded down $1.76 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $99.33. The company had a trading volume of 329,863 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,624,737. The company has a current ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. The firm has a market cap of $21.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.21, a PEG ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 0.89. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $92.37 and its 200-day moving average price is $89.33. Principal Financial Group, Inc. has a one year low of $75.00 and a one year high of $101.90.

Principal Financial Group (NASDAQ:PFG) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The company reported $2.07 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.01 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $3.53 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.11 billion. Principal Financial Group had a net margin of 10.10% and a return on equity of 16.25%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.81 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Principal Financial Group, Inc. will post 9.31 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Principal Financial Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 26th. Investors of record on Monday, June 1st will be paid a $0.82 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 1st. This represents a $3.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.3%. This is a positive change from Principal Financial Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.80. Principal Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 45.78%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently commented on PFG. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of Principal Financial Group from $93.00 to $95.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 3rd. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Principal Financial Group from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Friday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $103.00 target price on shares of Principal Financial Group in a research report on Monday, January 5th. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Principal Financial Group from $85.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reiterated a “hold” rating and issued a $92.00 target price on shares of Principal Financial Group in a research report on Thursday, March 26th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $95.33.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Principal Financial Group

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Capital Management Corp VA raised its stake in shares of Principal Financial Group by 19.2% during the third quarter. Capital Management Corp VA now owns 172,736 shares of the company’s stock valued at $14,322,000 after acquiring an additional 27,857 shares during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB raised its stake in Principal Financial Group by 160.3% in the third quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 48,902 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,978,000 after buying an additional 30,118 shares in the last quarter. Mediolanum International Funds Ltd grew its holdings in Principal Financial Group by 41.5% in the third quarter. Mediolanum International Funds Ltd now owns 127,368 shares of the company’s stock worth $10,504,000 after purchasing an additional 37,357 shares during the period. Rakuten Investment Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Principal Financial Group in the third quarter worth about $18,526,000. Finally, Teacher Retirement System of Texas grew its holdings in Principal Financial Group by 21.1% in the third quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 215,843 shares of the company’s stock worth $17,896,000 after purchasing an additional 37,676 shares during the period. 75.08% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Principal Financial Group Company Profile

Principal Financial Group (NASDAQ: PFG) is a global financial services company headquartered in Des Moines, Iowa, that provides a range of retirement, investment and insurance solutions to individuals, employers and institutional clients. The firm’s business is organized around retirement services, asset management, and insurance products designed to help clients plan, invest for, and protect income over the long term.

Principal’s product and service offerings include retirement plan recordkeeping and administration for employer-sponsored plans, individual and group retirement annuities, life and disability insurance, employee benefits solutions, and wealth management services.