Mizuho Securities USA LLC Raises Holdings in Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG)

Mizuho Securities USA LLC grew its holdings in shares of Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG - Free Report) by 818.1% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 152,648 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 136,021 shares during the period. Mizuho Securities USA LLC owned approximately 0.07% of Principal Financial Group worth $13,112,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of PFG. EdgeRock Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Principal Financial Group during the second quarter valued at about $26,000. Family Firm Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Principal Financial Group during the second quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Innealta Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Principal Financial Group during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $43,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new position in Principal Financial Group in the third quarter valued at approximately $50,000. Finally, MCF Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Principal Financial Group by 55.6% during the 2nd quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 613 shares of the company's stock worth $48,000 after purchasing an additional 219 shares during the period. 75.08% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently issued reports on PFG shares. Barclays upped their target price on Principal Financial Group from $75.00 to $77.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Principal Financial Group from $85.00 to $86.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Citigroup increased their target price on Principal Financial Group from $68.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock a "sell" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on shares of Principal Financial Group from $83.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Monday, July 29th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price target on Principal Financial Group from $88.00 to $86.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, July 30th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Principal Financial Group currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $85.58.

Principal Financial Group Trading Up 0.2 %

PFG traded up $0.20 during trading on Friday, reaching $86.56. 3,581,452 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,236,713. The company has a quick ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 0.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. The stock's 50-day moving average is $85.60 and its 200 day moving average is $82.22. The stock has a market capitalization of $19.80 billion, a PE ratio of 12.60, a P/E/G ratio of 1.00 and a beta of 1.20. Principal Financial Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $71.37 and a 12 month high of $91.97.

Principal Financial Group (NYSE:PFG - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The company reported $1.76 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.02 by ($0.26). Principal Financial Group had a positive return on equity of 14.67% and a negative net margin of 1.47%. The business had revenue of $3.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.92 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.72 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Principal Financial Group, Inc. will post 7.09 earnings per share for the current year.

Principal Financial Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 18th. Investors of record on Monday, December 2nd will be paid a $0.73 dividend. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.37%. This is a boost from Principal Financial Group's previous quarterly dividend of $0.72. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 2nd. Principal Financial Group's dividend payout ratio is presently -320.00%.

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.