Lecap Asset Management Ltd. Cuts Holdings in Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG)

Lecap Asset Management Ltd. decreased its position in Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG - Free Report) by 58.5% in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 9,536 shares of the company's stock after selling 13,415 shares during the quarter. Lecap Asset Management Ltd.'s holdings in Principal Financial Group were worth $819,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of PFG. Capital Research Global Investors lifted its stake in shares of Principal Financial Group by 2.4% in the 1st quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 6,602,298 shares of the company's stock valued at $569,844,000 after acquiring an additional 152,774 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its holdings in Principal Financial Group by 1.0% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,905,124 shares of the company's stock valued at $306,393,000 after buying an additional 39,854 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its holdings in Principal Financial Group by 2.9% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,903,138 shares of the company's stock valued at $149,301,000 after buying an additional 53,516 shares during the last quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. boosted its position in Principal Financial Group by 6.6% during the 1st quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. now owns 692,694 shares of the company's stock valued at $59,786,000 after buying an additional 43,190 shares during the period. Finally, Rhumbline Advisers grew its holdings in Principal Financial Group by 0.5% in the 2nd quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 478,129 shares of the company's stock worth $37,509,000 after acquiring an additional 2,487 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.08% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently commented on PFG. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Principal Financial Group from $74.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on Principal Financial Group from $83.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a report on Monday, July 29th. Bank of America reduced their target price on Principal Financial Group from $94.00 to $91.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on Principal Financial Group from $73.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 18th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Principal Financial Group from $85.00 to $86.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $85.42.

Principal Financial Group Stock Up 0.1 %

Shares of Principal Financial Group stock traded up $0.07 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $89.65. The company had a trading volume of 1,185,398 shares, compared to its average volume of 903,164. The company has a 50 day moving average of $83.62 and a 200 day moving average of $81.67. The stock has a market capitalization of $20.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.16, a P/E/G ratio of 0.95 and a beta of 1.19. Principal Financial Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $66.21 and a 52-week high of $91.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a quick ratio of 0.29 and a current ratio of 0.29.

Principal Financial Group (NYSE:PFG - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The company reported $1.63 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.87 by ($0.24). The company had revenue of $4.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.78 billion. Principal Financial Group had a return on equity of 14.92% and a net margin of 8.05%. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.53 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Principal Financial Group, Inc. will post 7.31 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.