Holocene Advisors LP Has $9.31 Million Stake in Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG)

Holocene Advisors LP raised its stake in shares of Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG) by 92.6% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 108,326 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 52,077 shares during the quarter. Holocene Advisors LP’s holdings in Principal Financial Group were worth $9,305,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Principal Financial Group by 2.2% during the 2nd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 6,325 shares of the company’s stock worth $493,000 after purchasing an additional 135 shares during the period. Ballentine Partners LLC increased its stake in 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 during the period. Graypoint LLC increased its stake in Principal Financial Group by 5.6% in the second quarter. Graypoint LLC now owns 2,654 shares of the company’s stock valued at $208,000 after acquiring an additional 140 shares during the period. Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC increased its stake in Principal Financial Group by 2.3% in the third quarter. Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 6,358 shares of the company’s stock valued at $546,000 after acquiring an additional 142 shares during the period. Finally, Empirical Finance LLC increased its stake in Principal Financial Group by 1.8% in the third quarter. Empirical Finance LLC now owns 7,875 shares of the company’s stock valued at $676,000 after acquiring an additional 142 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 75.08% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently weighed in on PFG. Royal Bank of Canada upped 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. Piper Sandler boosted their price target on shares of Principal Financial Group from $85.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Morgan Stanley reduced 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. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Principal Financial Group from $85.00 to $86.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, Bank of America reduced their price objective on shares of 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. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $85.92.

Principal Financial Group Trading Down 0.7 %

Shares of NYSE PFG opened at $84.80 on Wednesday. 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, Inc. has a 52-week low of $72.21 and a 52-week high of $91.97. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $86.39 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $82.45. The stock has a market cap of $19.40 billion, a P/E ratio of -94.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.00 and a beta of 1.20.

Principal Financial Group (NYSE:PFG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The company reported $1.76 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 firm had revenue of $3.01 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.92 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.72 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Principal Financial Group, Inc. will post 7.04 EPS for the current year.

Principal Financial Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 18th. Investors of record on Monday, December 2nd will be paid a dividend of $0.73 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 2nd. This is a positive change from Principal Financial Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.72. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.44%. Principal Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently -324.44%.

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.