Victory Capital Management Inc. Sells 34,958 Shares of Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG)

Victory Capital Management Inc. lowered its stake in Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG - Free Report) by 8.0% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 399,739 shares of the company's stock after selling 34,958 shares during the quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. owned 0.17% of Principal Financial Group worth $34,338,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Principal Financial Group by 2.3% during the 3rd quarter. Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 6,358 shares of the company's stock worth $546,000 after purchasing an additional 142 shares in the last quarter. WCM Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Principal Financial Group in the 3rd quarter valued at about $265,000. Versor Investments LP acquired a new position in Principal Financial Group during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $825,000. Venturi Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in Principal Financial Group by 24.0% in the third quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,226 shares of the company's stock worth $105,000 after acquiring an additional 237 shares in the last quarter. Finally, NJ State Employees Deferred Compensation Plan acquired a new stake in Principal Financial Group in the third quarter valued at approximately $215,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.08% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on PFG shares. Barclays upped their target price on Principal Financial Group from $75.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Piper Sandler lifted their price objective on shares of Principal Financial Group from $85.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on shares of Principal Financial Group from $85.00 to $83.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, August 19th. 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 research note on Monday, July 29th. Finally, Bank of America cut their target price on 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. Two equities research 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's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $85.58.

Principal Financial Group Stock Performance

Shares of PFG stock traded up $0.20 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $86.56. 3,581,452 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,236,713. The firm has a market capitalization of $19.80 billion, a PE ratio of 12.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.00 and a beta of 1.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 0.30 and a current ratio of 0.30. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $85.60 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $82.22. 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 released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The company reported $1.76 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates 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 the consensus estimate of $3.92 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.72 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Principal Financial Group, Inc. will post 7.09 EPS for the current year.

Principal Financial Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 18th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 2nd will be given a dividend of $0.73 per share. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a dividend 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 currently -320.00%.

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.