Principal Financial Group (NYSE:PFG) Rating Increased to Overweight at JPMorgan Chase & Co.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Principal Financial Group (NYSE:PFG) from a neutral rating to an overweight rating in a report issued on Tuesday morning, MarketBeat Ratings reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. currently has $92.00 price objective on the stock, down from their previous price objective of $95.00.

PFG has been the subject of several other reports. Piper Sandler raised shares of Principal Financial Group from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $90.00 price target for the company in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. Wells Fargo & Company restated an “underweight” rating and issued a $75.00 target price (down from $84.00) on shares of Principal Financial Group in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Barclays increased their price target 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. Bank of America reduced their price objective on Principal Financial Group from $94.00 to $91.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “underweight” rating and issued 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 assigned a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $84.42.

Principal Financial Group Trading Up 0.6 %

NYSE PFG opened at $78.30 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 0.30 and a quick ratio of 0.30. Principal Financial Group has a 12 month low of $72.21 and a 12 month high of $91.97. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $82.11 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $82.22. The company has a market capitalization of $17.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -87.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 1.22.

Principal Financial Group (NYSE:PFG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The company reported $1.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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 firm had revenue of $3.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.92 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.72 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict 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 disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 18th. Investors of record on Monday, December 2nd were issued a $0.73 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 2nd. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.73%. This is an increase from Principal Financial Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.72. Principal Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently -324.44%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Principal Financial Group

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Ballentine Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Principal Financial Group by 5.0% in the second quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 2,906 shares of the company’s stock valued at $228,000 after acquiring an additional 138 shares in the last quarter. Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC boosted its stake in 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 valued at $546,000 after purchasing an additional 142 shares in the last quarter. Empirical Finance LLC increased its position in shares of Principal Financial Group by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. Empirical Finance LLC now owns 7,875 shares of the company’s stock valued at $676,000 after purchasing an additional 142 shares during the period. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Principal Financial Group by 18.2% in the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 930 shares of the company’s stock worth $76,000 after buying an additional 143 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. raised its stake in shares of Principal Financial Group by 2.9% in the 3rd quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 5,091 shares of the company’s stock worth $437,000 after buying an additional 144 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.