NewSquare Capital LLC Purchases 1,850 Shares of Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG)

NewSquare Capital LLC lifted its position in shares of Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG) by 1.8% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 103,177 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,850 shares during the period. NewSquare Capital LLC’s holdings in Principal Financial Group were worth $7,993,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Merit Financial Group LLC raised its position in shares of Principal Financial Group by 2.3% in the third quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 6,947 shares of the company’s stock valued at $501,000 after purchasing an additional 153 shares during the period. Comerica Bank bought a new stake in Principal Financial Group during the 3rd quarter valued at $4,667,000. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd raised its holdings in Principal Financial Group by 15.8% during the 4th quarter. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd now owns 277,157 shares of the company’s stock valued at $21,804,000 after buying an additional 37,836 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its holdings in Principal Financial Group by 15.0% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 4,423,975 shares of the company’s stock worth $318,836,000 after purchasing an additional 575,646 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its holdings in Principal Financial Group by 1,218.9% in the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 250,602 shares of the company’s stock worth $19,715,000 after purchasing an additional 231,601 shares in the last quarter. 75.08% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on PFG shares. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on shares of Principal Financial Group from $75.00 to $83.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 14th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target 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. Evercore ISI boosted their target price on shares of Principal Financial Group from $84.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a report on Thursday, April 11th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on shares of 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. Finally, Piper Sandler boosted their price objective on shares of Principal Financial Group from $85.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, April 5th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and ten have issued a hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Principal Financial Group presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $80.64.

Principal Financial Group Stock Up 0.2 %

NYSE:PFG traded up $0.16 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $81.51. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 737,900 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,128,736. The firm has a market capitalization of $19.17 billion, a PE ratio of 33.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.85 and a beta of 1.25. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $81.68 and a 200-day moving average of $77.25. Principal Financial Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $65.17 and a 1 year high of $86.79. The company has a quick ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 0.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36.

Principal Financial Group (NYSE:PFG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 12th. The company reported $1.83 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.70 by $0.13. Principal Financial Group had a net margin of 4.56% and a return on equity of 15.14%. The firm had revenue of $2.69 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.53 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.70 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Principal Financial Group, Inc. will post 7.6 earnings per share for the current year.

Principal Financial Group declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase plan on Monday, February 12th that allows the company to buyback $1.50 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to buy up to 7.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Principal Financial Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 12th were paid a dividend of $0.69 per share. This is a boost from Principal Financial Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.67. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 11th. This represents a $2.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.39%. Principal Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 112.65%.

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.