Wells Fargo & Company Lowers Principal Financial Group (NYSE:PFG) Price Target to $69.00

Principal Financial Group (NYSE:PFG - Free Report) had its price objective lowered by Wells Fargo & Company from $75.00 to $69.00 in a research report report published on Tuesday morning,Benzinga reports. Wells Fargo & Company currently has an underweight rating on the stock.

A number of other research firms also recently issued reports on PFG. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on Principal Financial Group from $87.00 to $91.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Piper Sandler upgraded shares of Principal Financial Group from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $90.00 target price for the company in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. Bank of America reduced their target price on shares of Principal Financial Group from $94.00 to $91.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of Principal Financial Group from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and cut their price objective for the company from $95.00 to $92.00 in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reiterated an "underweight" rating and set a $80.00 target price (down from $86.00) on shares of Principal Financial Group in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Principal Financial Group currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $84.25.

Principal Financial Group Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:PFG traded up $1.04 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $78.84. 976,084 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 983,748. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 0.30 and a current ratio of 0.30. Principal Financial Group has a one year low of $72.21 and a one year high of $91.97. The company has a market cap of $18.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -87.60, a P/E/G ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 1.22. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $81.72 and a 200 day moving average of $82.15.

Principal Financial Group (NYSE:PFG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The company reported $1.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates 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 for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.92 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.72 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Principal Financial Group will post 7.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Principal Financial Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 18th. Investors of record on Monday, December 2nd were paid a dividend of $0.73 per share. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.70%. This is a boost from Principal Financial Group's previous quarterly dividend of $0.72. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 2nd. Principal Financial Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -324.44%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in PFG. Metis Global Partners LLC grew its position in Principal Financial Group by 5.0% in the third quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC now owns 11,230 shares of the company's stock worth $965,000 after acquiring an additional 533 shares in the last quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC raised its position in Principal Financial Group by 66.2% during the 3rd quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 24,932 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,137,000 after purchasing an additional 9,933 shares in the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC increased its position in Principal Financial Group by 27.1% during the 2nd quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 298,562 shares of the company's stock valued at $23,422,000 after purchasing an additional 63,747 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its holdings in Principal Financial Group by 358.7% during the third quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 16,328 shares of the company's stock worth $1,403,000 after buying an additional 12,768 shares during the period. Finally, B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. Holding AG bought a new stake in Principal Financial Group during the 3rd quarter valued at $2,441,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.08% of the company's stock.

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.