Trexquant Investment LP Takes Position in Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG)

Trexquant Investment LP acquired a new position in Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 45,145 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,552,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Norges Bank bought a new position in Principal Financial Group in the fourth quarter worth approximately $253,990,000. RIA Advisory Group LLC lifted its position in Principal Financial Group by 35,473.1% during the fourth quarter. RIA Advisory Group LLC now owns 1,080,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $84,964,000 after purchasing an additional 1,076,964 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its holdings in Principal Financial Group by 15.0% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 4,423,975 shares of the company’s stock valued at $318,836,000 after purchasing an additional 575,646 shares during the period. Hsbc Holdings PLC increased its position in Principal Financial Group by 60.5% in the third quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 1,210,985 shares of the company’s stock worth $87,305,000 after buying an additional 456,455 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Trust Point Inc. bought a new position in shares of Principal Financial Group in the fourth quarter worth about $30,290,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.08% of the company’s stock.

Principal Financial Group Stock Performance

NYSE PFG opened at $81.42 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 0.29 and a quick ratio of 0.29. Principal Financial Group, Inc. has a 1-year low of $65.17 and a 1-year high of $86.79. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $82.67 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $79.23. The stock has a market capitalization of $19.08 billion, a PE ratio of 15.54, a P/E/G ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 1.24.

Principal Financial Group (NYSE:PFG) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The company reported $1.65 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.74 by ($0.09). The business had revenue of $4.05 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.68 billion. Principal Financial Group had a net margin of 8.70% and a return on equity of 15.06%. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.48 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that Principal Financial Group, Inc. will post 7.5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Principal Financial Group declared that its board has approved a stock repurchase program on Monday, February 12th that permits the company to buyback $1.50 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to repurchase up to 7.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Principal Financial Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 27th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 3rd will be given a dividend of $0.71 per share. This represents a $2.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.49%. This is a boost from Principal Financial Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.69. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 3rd. Principal Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 52.67%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

PFG has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on Principal Financial Group from $91.00 to $85.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 29th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on shares of Principal Financial Group from $85.00 to $89.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on shares of Principal Financial Group from $75.00 to $83.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 14th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Principal Financial Group from $81.00 to $82.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, April 15th. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their price objective on Principal Financial Group from $84.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and nine have assigned a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Principal Financial Group presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $80.30.

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.