Fmr LLC Has $43.23 Million Position in Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG)

FMR LLC lowered its stake in Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG - Free Report) by 3.9% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 503,233 shares of the company's stock after selling 20,236 shares during the period. FMR LLC owned 0.22% of Principal Financial Group worth $43,228,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of PFG. Acadian Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Principal Financial Group by 403.6% in the second quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 354,447 shares of the company's stock valued at $27,800,000 after purchasing an additional 284,067 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA bought a new position in Principal Financial Group in the second quarter valued at approximately $19,698,000. Bank of Montreal Can boosted its stake in Principal Financial Group by 41.0% in the third quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 503,735 shares of the company's stock valued at $43,367,000 after acquiring an additional 146,473 shares during the last quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC boosted its stake in Principal Financial Group by 818.1% in the third quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC now owns 152,648 shares of the company's stock valued at $13,112,000 after acquiring an additional 136,021 shares during the last quarter. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in Principal Financial Group by 6,593.7% in the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 132,200 shares of the company's stock valued at $11,356,000 after acquiring an additional 130,225 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.08% of the company's stock.

Principal Financial Group Stock Up 0.8 %

PFG traded up $0.65 during trading on Friday, hitting $84.40. The company had a trading volume of 1,399,801 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,116,869. The company has a market capitalization of $19.30 billion, a PE ratio of -93.78, a PEG ratio of 0.99 and a beta of 1.20. Principal Financial Group, Inc. has a one year low of $72.21 and a one year high of $91.97. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $86.31 and its 200 day moving average price is $82.48. The company has a quick ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 0.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35.

Principal Financial Group (NYSE:PFG - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The company reported $1.76 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.02 by ($0.26). Principal Financial Group had a negative net margin of 1.47% and a positive return on equity of 14.67%. The company had revenue of $3.01 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.92 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.72 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that Principal Financial Group, Inc. will post 7.04 earnings per share for the current year.

Principal Financial Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 18th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 2nd will be paid a $0.73 dividend. This is a positive change from Principal Financial Group's previous quarterly dividend of $0.72. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.46%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 2nd. Principal Financial Group's payout ratio is presently -324.44%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

PFG has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on shares of Principal Financial Group from $87.00 to $91.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "underweight" rating and issued a $80.00 price objective (down from $86.00) on shares of Principal Financial Group in a research note on Thursday. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Principal Financial Group from $85.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Principal Financial Group from $75.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Finally, Bank of America reduced their price target on shares of Principal Financial Group from $94.00 to $91.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $85.67.

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.