Principal Financial Group (NYSE:PFG) Shares Gap Down – Time to Sell?

Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG) gapped down prior to trading on Friday . The stock had previously closed at $89.65, but opened at $86.88. Principal Financial Group shares last traded at $82.99, with a volume of 519,081 shares trading hands.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently commented on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Principal Financial Group from $85.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Raymond James raised Principal Financial Group from a “market perform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and set a $99.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, July 9th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price objective on Principal Financial Group from $88.00 to $86.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, July 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Principal Financial Group from an “underweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and upped their target price for the company from $88.00 to $96.00 in a report on Tuesday, July 2nd. Finally, Citigroup raised their price target on Principal Financial Group from $68.00 to $70.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $85.42.

Principal Financial Group Trading Down 9.8 %

The stock has a market cap of $18.96 billion, a PE ratio of 15.93, a PEG ratio of 0.95 and a beta of 1.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a quick ratio of 0.29 and a current ratio of 0.29. The business has a 50-day moving average of $83.62 and a 200 day moving average of $81.67.

Principal Financial Group (NYSE:PFG) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The company reported $1.63 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.87 by ($0.24). The firm had revenue of $4.31 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.78 billion. Principal Financial Group had a return on equity of 14.92% and a net margin of 8.05%. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.53 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that Principal Financial Group, Inc. will post 7.31 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. lifted its position in Principal Financial Group by 22.6% during the third quarter. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. now owns 4,530 shares of the company’s stock worth $389,000 after buying an additional 834 shares during the period. Hunter Associates Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Principal Financial Group in the third quarter worth approximately $207,000. Concord Wealth Partners grew its holdings in Principal Financial Group by 822.8% in the third quarter. Concord Wealth Partners now owns 3,110 shares of the company’s stock valued at $267,000 after purchasing an additional 2,773 shares during the period. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Principal Financial Group during the third quarter worth approximately $769,000. Finally, Forsta AP Fonden raised its stake in Principal Financial Group by 27.4% during the third quarter. Forsta AP Fonden now owns 63,200 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,429,000 after purchasing an additional 13,600 shares during the period. 75.08% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.