Key Points
- Insider sale: Wee Yee Cheong sold a total of 15,000 PFG shares across April 29–May 1 at about $101 each, generating roughly $1.52 million and reducing their holdings by 5.2% to 86,371 shares (≈$8.72M).
- Company update: Principal posted quarterly EPS of $2.07 (beat $2.01 est.) but missed revenue, raised the quarterly dividend to $0.82 (annual $3.28, yield 3.3%), and is trading near its 1‑year high with an average analyst rating of "Hold" (target $95.33).
Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:PFG - Get Free Report) insider Wee Yee Cheong sold 4,737 shares of Principal Financial Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $101.01, for a total value of $478,484.37. Following the transaction, the insider owned 86,371 shares of the company's stock, valued at $8,724,334.71. This represents a 5.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link.
Wee Yee Cheong also recently made the following trade(s):
- On Friday, May 1st, Wee Yee Cheong sold 9,183 shares of Principal Financial Group stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $101.26, for a total value of $929,870.58.
- On Wednesday, April 29th, Wee Yee Cheong sold 1,080 shares of Principal Financial Group stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $101.00, for a total value of $109,080.00.
Principal Financial Group Trading Down 1.6%
Shares of Principal Financial Group stock opened at $99.46 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 0.27 and a quick ratio of 0.27. Principal Financial Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $75.00 and a 1 year high of $101.90. The company has a market capitalization of $21.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.23, a P/E/G ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 0.89. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $92.37 and a 200 day moving average price of $89.33.
Principal Financial Group (NASDAQ:PFG - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The company reported $2.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.01 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $3.53 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.11 billion. Principal Financial Group had a return on equity of 16.25% and a net margin of 10.10%.During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.81 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Principal Financial Group, Inc. will post 9.31 EPS for the current fiscal year.
Principal Financial Group Increases Dividend
The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 26th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 1st will be issued a $0.82 dividend. This is a positive change from Principal Financial Group's previous quarterly dividend of $0.80. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 1st. This represents a $3.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.3%. Principal Financial Group's payout ratio is currently 45.78%.
Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth
A number of research firms have issued reports on PFG. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods restated a "hold" rating and issued a $92.00 target price on shares of Principal Financial Group in a report on Thursday, March 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated a "neutral" rating and set a $103.00 price objective on shares of Principal Financial Group in a report on Monday, January 5th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on Principal Financial Group from $93.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 3rd. Weiss Ratings cut Principal Financial Group from a "buy (b)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a report on Friday. Finally, UBS Group raised their price objective on Principal Financial Group from $92.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, April 9th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Principal Financial Group currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $95.33.
View Our Latest Stock Report on Principal Financial Group
Institutional Investors Weigh In On Principal Financial Group
A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC grew its holdings in Principal Financial Group by 11.0% in the first quarter. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC now owns 3,631 shares of the company's stock valued at $327,000 after purchasing an additional 360 shares during the period. Avantax Planning Partners Inc. increased its stake in Principal Financial Group by 0.7% during the first quarter. Avantax Planning Partners Inc. now owns 35,622 shares of the company's stock worth $3,210,000 after acquiring an additional 233 shares during the last quarter. AMG National Trust Bank increased its stake in Principal Financial Group by 2.1% during the first quarter. AMG National Trust Bank now owns 138,056 shares of the company's stock worth $12,440,000 after acquiring an additional 2,861 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its stake in Principal Financial Group by 5.4% during the first quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 226,718 shares of the company's stock worth $20,430,000 after acquiring an additional 11,574 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC increased its stake in Principal Financial Group by 12.3% during the first quarter. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC now owns 8,084 shares of the company's stock worth $788,000 after acquiring an additional 884 shares during the last quarter. 75.08% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
About Principal Financial Group
(
Get Free Report)
Principal Financial Group (NASDAQ: PFG) is a global financial services company headquartered in Des Moines, Iowa, that provides a range of retirement, investment and insurance solutions to individuals, employers and institutional clients. The firm's business is organized around retirement services, asset management, and insurance products designed to help clients plan, invest for, and protect income over the long term.
Principal's product and service offerings include retirement plan recordkeeping and administration for employer-sponsored plans, individual and group retirement annuities, life and disability insurance, employee benefits solutions, and wealth management services.
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