Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG) Shares Purchased by Romano Brothers AND Company

Romano Brothers AND Company boosted its stake in shares of Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG) by 29.0% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 6,485 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 1,457 shares during the quarter. Romano Brothers AND Company’s holdings in Principal Financial Group were worth $560,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in PFG. AMF Tjanstepension AB grew its holdings in shares of Principal Financial Group by 282.0% in the 1st quarter. AMF Tjanstepension AB now owns 308,308 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,633,000 after acquiring an additional 227,608 shares during the period. GoalVest Advisory LLC boosted its position in Principal Financial Group by 3.7% during the first quarter. GoalVest Advisory LLC now owns 17,707 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,528,000 after purchasing an additional 636 shares in the last quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC boosted its position in Principal Financial Group by 8.6% during the first quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 181,776 shares of the company’s stock worth $15,689,000 after purchasing an additional 14,339 shares in the last quarter. Riverview Trust Co acquired a new stake in Principal Financial Group in the first quarter valued at $34,000. Finally, Unison Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Principal Financial Group by 1.2% in the first quarter. Unison Advisors LLC now owns 57,341 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,949,000 after buying an additional 705 shares in the last quarter. 75.08% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

PFG has been the topic of several recent research reports. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective 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. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on shares of Principal Financial Group from $74.00 to $78.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday. Evercore ISI raised their price objective on shares of Principal Financial Group from $84.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Principal Financial Group from $91.00 to $85.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 29th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on Principal Financial Group from $85.00 to $89.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and nine have issued a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $81.50.

Principal Financial Group Price Performance

PFG opened at $78.45 on Friday. Principal Financial Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $66.21 and a 1 year high of $86.79. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $80.93 and its 200 day simple moving average is $80.56. The stock has a market capitalization of $18.39 billion, a PE ratio of 11.66, a P/E/G ratio of 0.84 and a beta of 1.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 0.29 and a current ratio of 0.29.

Principal Financial Group (NYSE:PFG) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The company reported $1.65 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.74 by ($0.09). The company had revenue of $4.05 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.68 billion. Principal Financial Group had a net margin of 8.70% and a return on equity of 15.06%. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.48 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Principal Financial Group, Inc. will post 7.45 EPS for the current year.

Principal Financial Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 27th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 3rd were paid a $0.71 dividend. This is a positive change from Principal Financial Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.69. This represents a $2.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.62%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 3rd. Principal Financial Group’s payout ratio is currently 54.20%.

Principal Financial Group 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.