Victory Capital Management Inc. Sells 34,958 Shares of Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG)

Victory Capital Management Inc. cut its holdings in Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG) by 8.0% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 399,739 shares of the company’s stock after selling 34,958 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Principal Financial Group were worth $34,338,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of PFG. EdgeRock Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Principal Financial Group in the second quarter valued at $26,000. Family Firm Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Principal Financial Group during the second quarter valued at about $33,000. Innealta Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Principal Financial Group in the second quarter worth about $43,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new position in shares of Principal Financial Group in the third quarter valued at approximately $50,000. Finally, MCF Advisors LLC grew its stake in Principal Financial Group by 55.6% during the second quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 613 shares of the company’s stock valued at $48,000 after acquiring an additional 219 shares in the last quarter. 75.08% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Principal Financial Group Trading Up 0.2 %

PFG stock opened at $86.56 on Friday. Principal Financial Group, Inc. has a one year low of $71.37 and a one year high of $91.97. The company has a market capitalization of $19.80 billion, a PE ratio of -96.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.00 and a beta of 1.20. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $85.60 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $82.20. 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 posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The company reported $1.76 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.02 by ($0.26). Principal Financial Group had a positive return on equity of 14.67% and a negative net margin of 1.47%. The business 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 firm earned $1.72 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that Principal Financial Group, Inc. will post 7.12 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. Investors of record on Monday, December 2nd will be issued a dividend of $0.73 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 2nd. This is a boost from Principal Financial Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.72. This represents a $2.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.37%. Principal Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently -320.00%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have issued reports on PFG. Barclays increased 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 note on Friday, October 25th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price objective on Principal Financial Group from $88.00 to $86.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, July 30th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on Principal Financial Group from $83.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Monday, July 29th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on Principal Financial Group from $85.00 to $83.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, August 19th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Principal Financial Group from $85.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Principal Financial Group currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $85.58.

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.