Ausdal Financial Partners Inc. Cuts Position in Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG)

Ausdal Financial Partners Inc. lowered its position in shares of Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG) by 1.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 9,753 shares of the company’s stock after selling 126 shares during the quarter. Ausdal Financial Partners Inc.’s holdings in Principal Financial Group were worth $755,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of PFG. Amundi lifted its holdings in shares of Principal Financial Group by 24.1% during the 4th quarter. Amundi now owns 1,359,779 shares of the company’s stock valued at $106,511,000 after acquiring an additional 264,383 shares in the last quarter. KBC Group NV raised its position in Principal Financial Group by 398.4% in the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 291,379 shares of the company’s stock valued at $22,555,000 after purchasing an additional 232,915 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Principal Financial Group during the fourth quarter worth about $15,821,000. Bank of Montreal Can boosted its position in shares of Principal Financial Group by 41.0% in the third quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 503,735 shares of the company’s stock worth $43,367,000 after buying an additional 146,473 shares during the period. Finally, Quantbot Technologies LP grew its stake in shares of Principal Financial Group by 2,064.3% in the fourth quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP now owns 148,299 shares of the company’s stock valued at $11,480,000 after buying an additional 141,447 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.08% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Principal Financial Group from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $95.00 to $92.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Principal Financial Group from $77.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and set a $91.00 price target on shares of Principal Financial Group in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. Piper Sandler upped their price objective on shares of Principal Financial Group from $90.00 to $93.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Principal Financial Group from $69.00 to $74.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $85.92.

Principal Financial Group Stock Performance

Shares of PFG opened at $85.60 on Thursday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $84.05 and its 200 day moving average price is $83.59. Principal Financial Group, Inc. has a 12-month low of $72.21 and a 12-month high of $91.98. The stock has a market capitalization of $19.31 billion, a PE ratio of 12.81, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 1.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 0.29 and a quick ratio of 0.30.

Principal Financial Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 12th will be given a $0.75 dividend. This is an increase from Principal Financial Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.73. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.50%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 12th. Principal Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 44.91%.

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.