Beacon Financial Group Sells 792 Shares of Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG)

Beacon Financial Group decreased its holdings in Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG) by 16.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,909 shares of the company’s stock after selling 792 shares during the period. Beacon Financial Group’s holdings in Principal Financial Group were worth $303,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in PFG. KBC Group NV raised its position in Principal Financial Group by 398.4% during the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 291,379 shares of the company’s stock valued at $22,555,000 after purchasing an additional 232,915 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its holdings in Principal Financial Group by 85.6% during the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 466,133 shares of the company’s stock valued at $40,041,000 after buying an additional 215,045 shares during the period. Bank of Montreal Can lifted its position in Principal Financial Group by 41.0% in the third quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 503,735 shares of the company’s stock worth $43,367,000 after buying an additional 146,473 shares during the last quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC boosted its stake in Principal Financial Group by 818.1% during the third quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC now owns 152,648 shares of the company’s stock worth $13,112,000 after buying an additional 136,021 shares during the period. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its position in Principal Financial Group by 6,593.7% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 132,200 shares of the company’s stock valued at $11,356,000 after acquiring an additional 130,225 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.08% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on PFG shares. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Principal Financial Group from $77.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on Principal Financial Group from $75.00 to $69.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on Principal Financial Group from $90.00 to $92.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Principal Financial Group from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $95.00 to $92.00 in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, Piper Sandler upped their price objective on Principal Financial Group from $90.00 to $93.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $85.54.

Principal Financial Group Stock Performance

PFG stock opened at $84.94 on Thursday. 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, Inc. has a 1-year low of $72.21 and a 1-year high of $91.97. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $80.03 and a 200 day moving average price of $82.07. The company has a market capitalization of $19.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.72, a PEG ratio of 0.79 and a beta of 1.22.

Principal Financial Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 12th will be paid a dividend of $0.75 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 12th. This is an increase from Principal Financial Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.73. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.53%. Principal Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 43.71%.

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.