Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG) Shares Sold by Barclays PLC

Barclays PLC lessened its stake in Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG - Free Report) by 32.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 541,102 shares of the company's stock after selling 265,570 shares during the period. Barclays PLC owned 0.24% of Principal Financial Group worth $41,887,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Sanctuary Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Principal Financial Group by 66.2% during the 3rd quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 24,932 shares of the company's stock worth $2,137,000 after acquiring an additional 9,933 shares in the last quarter. Legacy Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in Principal Financial Group during the 4th quarter valued at about $771,000. Columbus Macro LLC raised its stake in Principal Financial Group by 46.7% in the fourth quarter. Columbus Macro LLC now owns 25,653 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,986,000 after buying an additional 8,169 shares during the last quarter. Lecap Asset Management Ltd. boosted its holdings in Principal Financial Group by 135.6% in the fourth quarter. Lecap Asset Management Ltd. now owns 22,469 shares of the company's stock worth $1,739,000 after acquiring an additional 12,933 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quantbot Technologies LP grew its stake in shares of 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 during the last quarter. 75.08% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

PFG has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted 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 report on Wednesday, February 12th. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of Principal Financial Group from $80.00 to $76.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 11th. BMO Capital Markets initiated coverage on Principal Financial Group in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. They issued a "market perform" rating and a $93.00 target price for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Principal Financial Group from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and dropped their price target for the company from $95.00 to $92.00 in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, UBS Group raised their price objective on Principal Financial Group from $87.00 to $93.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $84.69.

Principal Financial Group Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE PFG traded up $2.17 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $75.02. The stock had a trading volume of 378,378 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,279,230. The firm has a market cap of $16.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.23, a PEG ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 1.01. Principal Financial Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $68.39 and a fifty-two week high of $91.98. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $81.21 and a 200-day moving average of $82.42. The company has a current ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36.

Principal Financial Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 12th were paid a $0.75 dividend. This is an increase from Principal Financial Group's previous quarterly dividend of $0.73. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.00%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 12th. Principal Financial Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 44.91%.

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.