Zacks Research Brokers Boost Earnings Estimates for PFG

Principal Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:PFG) – Equities researchers at Zacks Research lifted their Q1 2026 earnings per share estimates for shares of Principal Financial Group in a note issued to investors on Wednesday, November 13th. Zacks Research analyst R. Department now anticipates that the company will earn $1.47 per share for the quarter, up from their prior forecast of $1.06. The consensus estimate for Principal Financial Group’s current full-year earnings is $7.09 per share.

Principal Financial Group (NYSE:PFG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The company reported $1.76 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.02 by ($0.26). The firm had revenue of $3.01 billion during 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 prior year, the company earned $1.72 EPS.

A number of other research firms have also recently weighed in on PFG. Piper Sandler upped their price target on Principal Financial Group from $85.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Citigroup increased their target price on Principal Financial Group from $68.00 to $70.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Principal Financial Group from $85.00 to $86.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on Principal Financial Group from $87.00 to $91.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Bank of America lowered their target price on Principal Financial Group from $94.00 to $91.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $85.92.

Principal Financial Group Stock Performance

PFG opened at $84.18 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $19.25 billion, a P/E ratio of -93.53, a P/E/G ratio of 1.00 and a beta of 1.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 0.30 and a quick ratio of 0.30. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $85.84 and its 200 day simple moving average is $82.30. Principal Financial Group has a 1-year low of $71.39 and a 1-year high of $91.97.

Principal Financial Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 18th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 2nd will be paid a dividend of $0.73 per share. This represents a $2.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.47%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 2nd. This is a positive change from Principal Financial Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.72. Principal Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently -320.00%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in PFG. Metis Global Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Principal Financial Group by 5.0% in the 3rd quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC now owns 11,230 shares of the company’s stock worth $965,000 after buying an additional 533 shares during the period. Cetera Investment Advisers raised its position in shares of Principal Financial Group by 108.1% in the 1st quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 53,579 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,624,000 after buying an additional 27,827 shares during the period. Sei Investments Co. raised its position in shares of Principal Financial Group by 59.4% in the 1st quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 24,275 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,095,000 after buying an additional 9,048 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC raised its position in shares of Principal Financial Group by 57.3% in the 2nd quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 178,635 shares of the company’s stock worth $14,014,000 after buying an additional 65,070 shares during the period. Finally, Tidal Investments LLC raised its position in shares of Principal Financial Group by 54.2% in the 1st quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 26,847 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,317,000 after buying an additional 9,432 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.08% of the company’s stock.

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.