Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG) Shares Bought by Czech National Bank

Czech National Bank boosted its stake in shares of Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG) by 6.5% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 41,091 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 2,499 shares during the quarter. Czech National Bank’s holdings in Principal Financial Group were worth $3,224,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in PFG. Independent Advisor Alliance increased its holdings in Principal Financial Group by 11.4% in the 4th quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance now owns 5,130 shares of the company’s stock valued at $404,000 after purchasing an additional 524 shares during the last quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC raised its holdings in shares of Principal Financial Group by 12.3% in the 4th quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 1,360,338 shares of the company’s stock valued at $107,030,000 after buying an additional 149,353 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in Principal Financial Group by 2.3% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,311,223 shares of the company’s stock worth $103,154,000 after acquiring an additional 29,462 shares in the last quarter. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System boosted its holdings in Principal Financial Group by 6.6% during the 1st quarter. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System now owns 296,889 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,624,000 after acquiring an additional 18,368 shares during the period. Finally, Cetera Investment Advisers grew its position in Principal Financial Group by 108.1% in the 1st quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 53,579 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,624,000 after acquiring an additional 27,827 shares in the last quarter. 75.08% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of Principal Financial Group from $81.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, April 15th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of Principal Financial Group from $87.00 to $85.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, July 29th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on Principal Financial Group from $73.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 18th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price objective on Principal Financial Group from $88.00 to $86.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, July 30th. Finally, Citigroup boosted their target price on Principal Financial Group from $68.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $85.50.

Principal Financial Group Stock Up 0.1 %

Shares of NYSE:PFG traded up $0.08 during trading on Monday, hitting $74.86. 279,738 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,127,816. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $80.08 and its 200-day moving average price is $80.97. Principal Financial Group, Inc. has a 12-month low of $66.21 and a 12-month high of $88.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 0.29 and a quick ratio of 0.29. The stock has a market capitalization of $17.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.29, a PEG ratio of 0.81 and a beta of 1.21.

Principal Financial Group (NYSE:PFG) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 25th. The company reported $1.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.87 by ($0.24). The company had revenue of $4.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.78 billion. Principal Financial Group had a net margin of 8.05% and a return on equity of 14.92%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.53 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Principal Financial Group, Inc. will post 7.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Principal Financial Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 27th. Investors of record on Thursday, September 5th will be paid a dividend of $0.72 per share. This represents a $2.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.85%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, September 5th. This is an increase from Principal Financial Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.71. Principal Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 54.96%.

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.