Principal Financial Group (NYSE:PFG) Given “Sector Perform” Rating at Royal Bank of Canada

Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed their sector perform rating on shares of Principal Financial Group (NYSE:PFG) in a research note published on Thursday,Benzinga reports. Royal Bank of Canada currently has a $91.00 price target on the stock.

Other research analysts have also recently issued research reports about the company. Bank of America reduced their target price 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. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price objective on Principal Financial Group from $93.00 to $90.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Principal Financial Group from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $95.00 to $92.00 in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “underweight” rating and set a $80.00 target price (down from $86.00) on shares of Principal Financial Group in a report on Thursday, December 5th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of Principal Financial Group from $75.00 to $69.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $84.25.

Principal Financial Group Trading Up 0.6 %

Shares of PFG stock opened at $81.66 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 0.30 and a current ratio of 0.30. Principal Financial Group has a 52-week low of $72.21 and a 52-week high of $91.97. The company has a market capitalization of $18.68 billion, a PE ratio of -90.73, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.75 and a beta of 1.22. The business’s fifty day moving average is $81.35 and its 200 day moving average is $82.16.

Principal Financial Group (NYSE:PFG) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The company reported $1.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates 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 during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.92 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.72 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Principal Financial Group will post 7.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Principal Financial Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 18th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 2nd were issued a $0.73 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 2nd. This is a positive change from Principal Financial Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.72. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.58%. Principal Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -324.44%.

Institutional Trading of Principal Financial Group

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of PFG. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA purchased a new stake in Principal Financial Group in the second quarter worth about $19,698,000. Bank of Montreal Can lifted its holdings in shares of Principal Financial Group by 41.0% during the third quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 503,735 shares of the company’s stock valued at $43,367,000 after purchasing an additional 146,473 shares during the last quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Principal Financial Group by 818.1% during the third quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC now owns 152,648 shares of the company’s stock valued at $13,112,000 after purchasing an additional 136,021 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Principal Financial Group by 6,593.7% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 132,200 shares of the company’s stock valued at $11,356,000 after purchasing an additional 130,225 shares during the last quarter. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its holdings in shares of Principal Financial Group by 5.1% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 2,462,562 shares of the company’s stock valued at $211,534,000 after purchasing an additional 118,722 shares during the last quarter. 75.08% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Principal Financial Group

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.