Principal Financial Group (NASDAQ:PFG) Stock Price Expected to Rise, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods Analyst Says

Principal Financial Group (NASDAQ:PFG) had its price target upped by analysts at Keefe, Bruyette & Woods from $102.00 to $112.00 in a report issued on Monday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a “market perform” rating on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods’ price target suggests a potential downside of 1.45% from the stock’s current price.

A number of other analysts have also recently weighed in on the company. Citigroup cut Principal Financial Group from a “sell” rating to an “underperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 24th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Principal Financial Group from $100.00 to $114.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Principal Financial Group from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Principal Financial Group from $92.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. Finally, Barclays increased their target price on shares of Principal Financial Group from $87.00 to $92.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $105.82.

Principal Financial Group Stock Performance

NASDAQ:PFG opened at $113.64 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $24.55 billion, a PE ratio of 16.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 0.88. The company has a quick ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 0.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. Principal Financial Group has a 12-month low of $75.00 and a 12-month high of $113.86. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $106.00 and a 200 day moving average price of $96.87.

Principal Financial Group (NASDAQ:PFG) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The company reported $2.07 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.01 by $0.06. Principal Financial Group had a return on equity of 16.25% and a net margin of 10.10%.The company had revenue of $3.53 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.11 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.81 earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that Principal Financial Group will post 9.37 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Principal Financial Group

In related news, insider Wee Yee Cheong sold 7,534 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.16, for a total transaction of $777,207.44. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 66,443 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,854,259.88. The trade was a 10.18% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, General Counsel George Djurasovic sold 2,571 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $100.83, for a total transaction of $259,233.93. Following the transaction, the general counsel owned 21,906 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,208,781.98. This represents a 10.50% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 28,317 shares of company stock valued at $2,884,902. 1.13% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Principal Financial Group

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Focus Financial Network Inc. increased its position in shares of Principal Financial Group by 2.0% in the 2nd quarter. Focus Financial Network Inc. now owns 5,613 shares of the company’s stock valued at $605,000 after buying an additional 110 shares in the last quarter. Prosperity Consulting Group LLC lifted its holdings in Principal Financial Group by 1.6% during the first quarter. Prosperity Consulting Group LLC now owns 6,921 shares of the company’s stock worth $624,000 after acquiring an additional 111 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its holdings in Principal Financial Group by 14.8% during the first quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 921 shares of the company’s stock worth $83,000 after acquiring an additional 119 shares in the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC grew its stake in Principal Financial Group by 7.6% in the fourth quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 1,686 shares of the company’s stock valued at $149,000 after acquiring an additional 119 shares during the period. Finally, Beacon Financial Group grew its stake in Principal Financial Group by 2.8% in the first quarter. Beacon Financial Group now owns 4,451 shares of the company’s stock valued at $401,000 after acquiring an additional 120 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.08% of the company’s stock.

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.