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Why Is Principal Financial (PFG) Down 3.7% Since the Last Earnings Report?

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A month has gone by since the last earnings report for Principal Financial Group Inc. (PFG - Free Report) . Shares have lost about 3.7% in that time frame, underperforming the market.

Will the recent negative trend continue leading up to the stock's next earnings release, or is it due for a breakout? Before we dive into how investors and analysts have reacted of late, let's take a quick look at its most recent earnings report in order to get a better handle on the important drivers.

Principal Financial Q1 Earnings Beat, Revenues Up Y/Y

Principal Financial’s first-quarter 2017 operating net income of $1.27 per share beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate by a dime. The bottom line also improved 31% year over year.

The company’s investment performance remained strong. Moreover, the company expanded its solution set alongside strengthening relationships with customers and distributors in the quarter. The company also displayed a balanced approach to capital management.

Including net realized capital losses of 8 cents, net income available to common stockholders was $1.19 per share, down 4.8% year over year.

Behind the Headlines

Operating revenues inched up 1% year over year to $3.1 billion.

Total expenses rose 1.5% year over year to $2.6 billion. This was primarily due to the increase in operating expenses.

Principal Financial’s Asset Under Management (AUM) as of Mar 31, 2076 was a record $620 billion. The metric increased 4.8% from Dec 31, 2016.

As of Mar 31, 2017, book value per share (excluding AOCI other than foreign currency translation adjustment) was $34.85, up 2.2% year over year.

Segment Update

Retirement and Income Solution: Revenues were up approximately 1.3% year over year to about $1.5 billion.

Operating earnings increased 35% year over year to $244.2 million.

Principal Global Investors: Revenues of $345.9 million climbed nearly 12% from the prior-year quarter.

Operating earnings rose 25% year over year to $100 million owing to higher operating revenues and improved margins.

Principal International: Revenues increased 12% year over year to $321.3 million in the quarter.

Operating earnings surged 48% year over year to $100.9 million.

US Insurance Solution: Revenues increased 7.4% year over year to $956.4 million.

Operating earnings of $86.2 million were up 7.1% year over year.

Corporate: Revenues of $1.5 million compared favorably with ($13.1) million in the year-ago quarter.

Operating loss of $58.5 million was narrower than a loss of $53.3 million in the year-earlier quarter.

Dividend and Share Repurchase Update

The company paid $130 million in dividends and deployed $118 million to buy back 1.9 million shares in the first quarter. Total capital utilized was $248 million.

The board of directors Principal Financial announced a dividend of $0.46 per share for the second quarter. The dividend will be paid on Jun 30.

Principal Financial targets 2017 capital deployment of $800 million to $1.1 billion.

How Have Estimates Been Moving Since Then?

Fresh estimates followed a downward path in the past month. There has been one revision lower for the quarter.

Principal Financial Group Inc Price and Consensus

VGM Scores

Currently, Principal Financial's stock has a poor Growth Score of 'F'. However, its Momentum is doing a bit better with a 'D'. The stock was allocated a grade of 'A' on the value side, putting it in the top quintile for this investment strategy.

Overall, the stock has an aggregate VGM Score of 'C'. If you aren't focused on one strategy, this score is the one you should be interested in.

Our style scores indicate that the stock is more suitable for value investors than momentum investors.

Outlook

While estimates have been moving downward, the magnitude of the revision is net zero.The stock has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). We expect above average returns from the stock in the next few months.


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