Beacon Financial Group Sells 792 Shares of Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG)

Beacon Financial Group cut its position in Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG) by 16.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 3,909 shares of the company’s stock after selling 792 shares during the quarter. Beacon Financial Group’s holdings in Principal Financial Group were worth $303,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. AMF Tjanstepension AB lifted its position in Principal Financial Group by 28.7% during the third quarter. AMF Tjanstepension AB now owns 290,723 shares of the company’s stock valued at $24,997,000 after acquiring an additional 64,915 shares during the last quarter. CWM LLC increased its position in shares of Principal Financial Group by 10.0% during the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 12,410 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,066,000 after purchasing an additional 1,125 shares in the last quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Principal Financial Group by 2,192.3% during the 3rd quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 2,980 shares of the company’s stock valued at $256,000 after purchasing an additional 2,850 shares during the last quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC boosted its position in shares of Principal Financial Group by 4.7% in the 3rd quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC now owns 24,891 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,138,000 after purchasing an additional 1,110 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Proquility Private Wealth Partners LLC grew its stake in Principal Financial Group by 6.3% during the 3rd quarter. Proquility Private Wealth Partners LLC now owns 12,277 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,055,000 after buying an additional 730 shares during the last quarter. 75.08% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have commented on PFG shares. 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. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on shares of Principal Financial Group from $90.00 to $92.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Piper Sandler upped their price target on shares of Principal Financial Group from $90.00 to $93.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Principal Financial Group from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and lowered their price objective for the stock from $95.00 to $92.00 in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets began coverage on Principal Financial Group in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $93.00 target price on the stock. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $85.54.

Principal Financial Group Stock Performance

NYSE PFG opened at $84.94 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $19.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.72, a PEG ratio of 0.79 and a beta of 1.22. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $80.03 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $82.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 0.30 and a current ratio of 0.30. Principal Financial Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $72.21 and a fifty-two week high of $91.97.

Principal Financial Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 12th will be issued a $0.75 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 12th. 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 yield of 3.53%. Principal Financial Group’s payout ratio is presently 43.71%.

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.