Principal Financial Group’s (PFG) “Underweight” Rating Reiterated at Wells Fargo & Company

Wells Fargo & Company restated their underweight rating on shares of Principal Financial Group (NYSE:PFG) in a report issued on Wednesday morning, Marketbeat Ratings reports. They currently have a $75.00 target price on the stock, down from their previous target price of $84.00.

PFG has been the subject of several other reports. Piper Sandler lifted their price target 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. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price 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. Bank of America decreased their price target 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. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “underweight” rating and issued a $80.00 price objective (down previously from $86.00) on shares of Principal Financial Group in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. Finally, Barclays upped their target price 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. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Principal Financial Group currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $84.75.

Principal Financial Group Price Performance

NYSE:PFG opened at $78.91 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $18.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -87.68, a PEG ratio of 0.93 and a beta of 1.20. The company has a 50-day moving average of $85.78 and a 200-day moving average of $82.41. Principal Financial Group has a 52 week low of $72.21 and a 52 week high of $91.97. 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 (NYSE:PFG) 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 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 analyst estimates of $3.92 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.72 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Principal Financial Group will post 7.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Principal Financial Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 18th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 2nd will be issued a dividend of $0.73 per share. This is an increase from Principal Financial Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.72. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.70%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 2nd. Principal Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -324.44%.

Institutional Trading of Principal Financial Group

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. EdgeRock Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Principal Financial Group in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC acquired a new position in shares of Principal Financial Group during the 2nd quarter worth about $32,000. Family Firm Inc. bought a new position in shares of Principal Financial Group in the 2nd quarter valued at about $33,000. Peterson Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Principal Financial Group in the third quarter valued at about $33,000. Finally, Innealta Capital LLC bought a new stake in Principal Financial Group during the second quarter worth about $43,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.08% of the company’s stock.

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.