Royal Bank of Canada Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Principal Financial Group (NYSE:PFG) Stock

Principal Financial Group (NYSE:PFG) had its price target raised by research analysts at Royal Bank of Canada from $87.00 to $91.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a “sector perform” rating on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada’s price objective points to a potential upside of 8.90% from the stock’s current price.

A number of other brokerages have also recently issued reports on PFG. Piper Sandler increased their target price on Principal Financial Group from $85.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. 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. 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. Citigroup raised their price target on Principal Financial Group from $68.00 to $70.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Finally, Barclays increased their target price on shares of Principal Financial Group from $75.00 to $77.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $85.92.

Principal Financial Group Stock Down 2.9 %

PFG traded down $2.51 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $83.56. The company had a trading volume of 219,824 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,138,428. The company has a quick ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 0.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. Principal Financial Group has a one year low of $71.39 and a one year high of $91.97. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $85.74 and its 200 day moving average price is $82.27. The company has a market capitalization of $19.11 billion, a PE ratio of -92.84, a PEG ratio of 1.00 and a beta of 1.20.

Principal Financial Group (NYSE:PFG) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The company reported $1.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.02 by ($0.26). The business had revenue of $3.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.92 billion. Principal Financial Group had a positive return on equity of 14.67% and a negative net margin of 1.47%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.72 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that Principal Financial Group will post 7.09 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Principal Financial Group

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. EdgeRock Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Principal Financial Group in the second quarter worth about $26,000. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC purchased a new position in Principal Financial Group during the second quarter worth approximately $32,000. Family Firm Inc. purchased a new stake in Principal Financial Group in the 2nd quarter worth $33,000. Peterson Financial Group Inc. purchased a new position in Principal Financial Group in the 3rd quarter valued at about $33,000. Finally, Innealta Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Principal Financial Group in the second quarter valued at approximately $43,000. 75.08% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.