Teacher Retirement System of Texas Has $41.31 Million Holdings in Principal Financial Group, Inc. $PFG

Teacher Retirement System of Texas lifted its position in Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:PFG) by 117.0% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 468,336 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 252,493 shares during the period. Teacher Retirement System of Texas’ holdings in Principal Financial Group were worth $41,312,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. purchased a new position in Principal Financial Group during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. FWL Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in Principal Financial Group during the 3rd quarter valued at $32,000. Rialto Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Principal Financial Group by 3,754.5% during the 4th quarter. Rialto Wealth Management LLC now owns 424 shares of the company’s stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 413 shares during the period. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Principal Financial Group by 315.7% in the fourth quarter. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC now owns 424 shares of the company’s stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 322 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Principal Financial Group in the fourth quarter worth $38,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.08% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Principal Financial Group

In other news, CEO Deanna D. Strable-Soethout sold 9,300 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $95.12, for a total transaction of $884,616.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 144,168 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,713,260.16. This represents a 6.06% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 1.08% of the company’s stock.

Principal Financial Group Stock Down 0.4%

Principal Financial Group stock opened at $97.00 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. Principal Financial Group, Inc. has a 1-year low of $71.54 and a 1-year high of $98.44. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $91.53 and its 200-day simple moving average is $88.59. The company has a market capitalization of $21.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.41, a P/E/G ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 0.87.

Principal Financial Group (NASDAQ:PFG) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 18th. The company reported $2.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. The firm had revenue of $4.58 billion during the quarter. Principal Financial Group had a net margin of 7.58% and a return on equity of 16.09%. Sell-side analysts forecast that Principal Financial Group, Inc. will post 9.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Principal Financial Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 26th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 1st will be paid a dividend of $0.82 per share. This is a boost from Principal Financial Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.80. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 1st. This represents a $3.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.4%. Principal Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 60.72%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Weiss Ratings raised Principal Financial Group from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Monday, December 29th. 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 research report on Tuesday, March 3rd. Bank of America lowered their target price on Principal Financial Group from $96.00 to $92.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 14th. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Principal Financial Group from $92.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 9th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $103.00 price target on shares of Principal Financial Group in a research note on Monday, January 5th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $93.44.

Principal Financial Group Profile

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.