Principal Financial Group’s (PFG) “Sector Perform” Rating Reiterated at Royal Bank of Canada

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

A number of other equities analysts also recently issued reports on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Principal Financial Group from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and cut their price target for the company from $95.00 to $92.00 in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Barclays boosted their target price on Principal Financial Group from $75.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Piper Sandler upgraded Principal Financial Group from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $90.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on Principal Financial Group from $75.00 to $69.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Finally, Bank of America cut 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. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Principal Financial Group presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $84.25.

Principal Financial Group Stock Performance

Shares of PFG opened at $81.66 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 0.30 and a quick ratio of 0.30. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $81.35 and a 200-day moving average of $82.16. The company has a market cap of $18.68 billion, a PE ratio of -90.73, a P/E/G ratio of 0.75 and a beta of 1.22. Principal Financial Group has a one year low of $72.21 and a one year high of $91.97.

Principal Financial Group (NYSE:PFG) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The company reported $1.76 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.02 by ($0.26). The firm had revenue of $3.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.92 billion. Principal Financial Group had a negative net margin of 1.47% and a positive return on equity of 14.67%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.72 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that Principal Financial Group will post 7.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Principal Financial Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 18th. Investors of record on Monday, December 2nd were issued a $0.73 dividend. This represents a $2.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.58%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 2nd. This is a boost from Principal Financial Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.72. Principal Financial Group’s payout ratio is -324.44%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Principal Financial Group

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Metis Global Partners LLC raised its holdings in Principal Financial Group by 5.0% during the 3rd quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC now owns 11,230 shares of the company’s stock valued at $965,000 after acquiring an additional 533 shares during the period. Sanctuary Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Principal Financial Group by 66.2% during the 3rd quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 24,932 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,137,000 after acquiring an additional 9,933 shares during the period. Intech Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in Principal Financial Group by 27.1% during the 2nd quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 298,562 shares of the company’s stock valued at $23,422,000 after acquiring an additional 63,747 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC raised its holdings in Principal Financial Group by 358.7% during the 3rd quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 16,328 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,403,000 after acquiring an additional 12,768 shares during the period. Finally, B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. Holding AG bought a new stake in Principal Financial Group during the 3rd quarter valued at $2,441,000. Institutional investors own 75.08% of the company’s stock.

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.