Rockland Trust Co. Has $730,000 Stake in Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG)

Rockland Trust Co. trimmed its stake in Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG) by 3.2% in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 8,498 shares of the company’s stock after selling 279 shares during the quarter. Rockland Trust Co.’s holdings in Principal Financial Group were worth $730,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Czech National Bank increased its holdings in shares of Principal Financial Group by 5.6% during the 3rd quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 43,402 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,728,000 after purchasing an additional 2,311 shares during the period. AMF Tjanstepension AB raised its holdings in Principal Financial Group by 28.7% during the 3rd quarter. AMF Tjanstepension AB now owns 290,723 shares of the company’s stock worth $24,997,000 after purchasing an additional 64,915 shares during the last quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund bought a new position in Principal Financial Group in the second quarter valued at approximately $8,237,000. Sanctuary Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Principal Financial Group in the 2nd quarter valued at $1,187,000. Finally, Cetera Investment Advisers grew its holdings in Principal Financial Group by 6.9% during the second quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 57,293 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,495,000 after purchasing an additional 3,714 shares during the period. 75.08% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently commented on PFG. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price objective on shares of 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. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on shares of Principal Financial Group from $73.00 to $76.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 18th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on Principal Financial Group from $87.00 to $85.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, July 29th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on Principal Financial Group from $85.00 to $83.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, August 19th. Finally, Barclays initiated coverage on shares of Principal Financial Group in a research note on Wednesday, September 4th. They issued an “underweight” rating and a $74.00 target price for the company. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $85.50.

Principal Financial Group Stock Up 3.2 %

Shares of NYSE PFG traded up $2.72 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $87.32. 688,755 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,127,766. Principal Financial Group, Inc. has a one year low of $66.21 and a one year high of $88.26. The company has a market cap of $20.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.66, a P/E/G ratio of 0.91 and a beta of 1.19. The company has a quick ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 0.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $80.35 and its 200-day simple moving average is $81.32.

Principal Financial Group (NYSE:PFG) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The company reported $1.63 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.87 by ($0.24). The business had revenue of $4.31 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.78 billion. Principal Financial Group had a return on equity of 14.92% and a net margin of 8.05%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.53 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that Principal Financial Group, Inc. will post 7.31 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Principal Financial Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 27th. Investors of record on Thursday, September 5th were paid a $0.72 dividend. This represents a $2.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.30%. This is a boost from Principal Financial Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.71. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, September 5th. Principal Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 54.96%.

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.