Independent Advisor Alliance Acquires 524 Shares of Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG)

Independent Advisor Alliance increased its holdings in shares of Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG) by 11.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 5,130 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 524 shares during the period. Independent Advisor Alliance’s holdings in Principal Financial Group were worth $404,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of PFG. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its position in Principal Financial Group by 15.0% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 4,423,975 shares of the company’s stock valued at $318,836,000 after acquiring an additional 575,646 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp raised its holdings in Principal Financial Group by 0.4% in the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 3,920,915 shares of the company’s stock worth $282,580,000 after purchasing an additional 16,052 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. raised its holdings in Principal Financial Group by 12.6% in the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 2,231,757 shares of the company’s stock worth $160,843,000 after purchasing an additional 249,127 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Principal Financial Group by 2.3% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,311,223 shares of the company’s stock valued at $103,154,000 after buying an additional 29,462 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hsbc Holdings PLC grew its position in shares of Principal Financial Group by 60.5% in the 3rd quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 1,210,985 shares of the company’s stock worth $87,305,000 after buying an additional 456,455 shares during the last quarter. 75.08% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Principal Financial Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE PFG opened at $83.49 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 0.29 and a quick ratio of 0.29. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $82.60 and its 200-day simple moving average is $79.19. Principal Financial Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $65.17 and a 12 month high of $86.79. The stock has a market capitalization of $19.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.93, a PEG ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 1.24.

Principal Financial Group (NYSE:PFG) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The company reported $1.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.74 by ($0.09). Principal Financial Group had a return on equity of 15.06% and a net margin of 8.70%. The firm had revenue of $4.05 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.68 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.48 earnings per share. Analysts expect that Principal Financial Group, Inc. will post 7.5 EPS for the current year.

Principal Financial Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 27th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 3rd will be paid a dividend of $0.71 per share. This represents a $2.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.40%. This is an increase from Principal Financial Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.69. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 3rd. Principal Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 52.67%.

Principal Financial Group announced that its board has initiated a share repurchase plan on Monday, February 12th that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.50 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to buy up to 7.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on PFG. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on Principal Financial Group from $91.00 to $85.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 29th. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of Principal Financial Group from $81.00 to $82.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, April 15th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on shares of Principal Financial Group from $75.00 to $83.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 14th. Evercore ISI upped their price target on shares of Principal Financial Group from $84.00 to $86.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on shares of Principal Financial Group from $85.00 to $89.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and nine have issued a hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $80.30.

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.