Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp Has $8.14 Million Stock Holdings in Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG)

Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp decreased its stake in Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG) by 6.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 105,108 shares of the company’s stock after selling 6,863 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp’s holdings in Principal Financial Group were worth $8,136,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. LPL Financial LLC increased its position in shares of Principal Financial Group by 4.4% during the 4th quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 106,747 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,263,000 after purchasing an additional 4,478 shares during the last quarter. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS bought a new position in shares of Principal Financial Group in the fourth quarter valued at $6,142,000. Mizuho Securities USA LLC increased its holdings in Principal Financial Group by 44.4% during the fourth quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC now owns 19,944 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,544,000 after buying an additional 6,128 shares during the last quarter. Virtu Financial LLC bought a new stake in Principal Financial Group during the fourth quarter worth $271,000. Finally, Quantbot Technologies LP raised its position in Principal Financial Group by 2,064.3% during the fourth quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP now owns 148,299 shares of the company’s stock worth $11,480,000 after acquiring an additional 141,447 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.08% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the stock. BMO Capital Markets assumed coverage on shares of Principal Financial Group in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $93.00 price objective for the company. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “underweight” rating and set a $80.00 price target (down previously from $86.00) on shares of Principal Financial Group in a report on Thursday, December 5th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on Principal Financial Group from $90.00 to $92.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Principal Financial Group from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $95.00 to $92.00 in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, Barclays increased their price target on Principal Financial Group from $77.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $85.92.

Principal Financial Group Price Performance

Shares of Principal Financial Group stock opened at $83.06 on Friday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $84.15 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $83.66. Principal Financial Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $72.21 and a twelve month high of $91.98. The stock has a market capitalization of $18.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 1.17. The company has a quick ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 0.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36.

Principal Financial Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 28th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 12th were given a dividend of $0.75 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 12th. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.61%. This is an increase from Principal Financial Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.73. Principal Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 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.