Principal Financial Group, Inc.
CorpDigest
Principal Financial Group, Inc.
Financial Performance
Last reviewed: June 2026 · By Swet Parvadiya
Revenue
$13.1B
Market Cap
$18.5B
Net Income
$1.4B
Employees
17,000
The investment portfolio allocation of 70% to the general account — invested primarily in U.S. Corporate bonds, commercial mortgages, and structured securities at an average credit rating of A — generates net investment income that functions as a stable baseline beneath actuarial and fee income. In the elevated rate environment of 2023-2025, the general account's expanding yield directly contributed to the Retirement and Income Solutions segment's $5.2 billion in revenues and 8% growth. Revenue of $13.1 billion in 2024 grew from $12.2 billion in 2023. Net income of $1.4 billion reflects the capital-intensive nature of insurance: significant assets under management, significant reserves, and actuarial risk that requires conservative capital positioning. Market capitalization of $18.5 billion at roughly 1.4 times revenue is standard for life insurance companies, where balance sheet quality and investment portfolio composition are as important to valuation as revenue trajectory. The group benefits segment — employer-sponsored life, disability, and dental insurance — provides recurring revenue linked to U.S. Employment levels. The 2020 pandemic surge in group disability claims tested the segment's reserving adequacy; Principal managed through that episode without significant capital impairment, drawing on actuarial conservatism built across 145 years of Iowa insurance culture. The pension risk transfer transactions that drove 2024's growth carry a specific financial logic: Principal collects a lump sum premium, books it as revenue, and accepts a long-dated obligation to pay defined pension benefits to the acquired plan's participants. The profitability depends on Principal's investment returns exceeding the actuarial cost of those obligations. In a high-yield environment, the spread is favorable. The duration management required to match those long-dated liabilities against the portfolio's asset duration is where Principal's fixed income investment team earns its keep.
Revenue Trend Analysis
YoY Change
+5.3%
2-Year CAGR
+6.4%
Peak Year
2025
Trend
Consistent Growth
Principal Financial Group, Inc. has reported revenue across 3 fiscal years, compounding at +6.4% annually over 2 years. The most recent year saw a 5.3% increase versus the prior year. Revenue peaked in 2025 at $13.8B. Out of 2 reported periods, 2 showed growth and 0 showed a decline.
| Fiscal Year | Revenue | Net Income | YoY Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| FY2025 | $13.8B | — | +5.3% |
| FY2024 | $13.1B | $1.4B | +7.4% |
| FY2023 | $12.2B | — | — |
Source: SEC EDGAR filings, annual earnings releases, and verified financial disclosures.
Click any row to see year details.
Principal Financial Group reported total revenue of approximately $13.1 billion for fiscal year 2024, drawn from a diversified mix across four operating segments. Retirement and Income Solutions contributed the largest share through workplace retirement plan recordkeeping fees, institutional pension products, and stable-value spread income. Principal Asset Management generated fee revenue on roughly $500 billion of assets under management plus performance fees and revenue from real estate and alternative strategies. Benefits and Protection delivered premium and fee income from group life, disability, dental, and vision insurance plus a small specialty individual life book. Principal International contributed revenue from pension and asset management joint ventures across Latin America and Asia, primarily Brazil, Chile, Mexico, China, and Southeast Asia. Roughly 60 percent of operating earnings come from fee-based businesses, with the remainder from spread income on general account investments and underwriting margin. Net income was approximately $1.5 billion, return on equity sat in the mid-teens, and the company maintained risk-based capital well above regulatory requirements while returning approximately $1.5 billion to shareholders through dividends and buybacks during the year.
Principal Financial Group has a market capitalization of approximately $18.5 billion based on recent trading levels, placing it in the mid-tier of US publicly traded life and retirement companies but well below the largest peers. MetLife, the largest US life insurer by market cap, trades at roughly $50 billion to $60 billion, and Prudential Financial at approximately $40 billion. Closer comparables in scale include Lincoln National, Unum, and Globe Life among traditional insurers, plus pure-play retirement and asset manager peers like Voya Financial and Ameriprise. Principal trades at a price-to-earnings ratio in the low-to-mid teens and a price-to-book ratio modestly above 1.0, valuation levels that reflect a business mix more weighted to fee income than legacy life insurers but still discounted relative to pure asset managers like BlackRock and T. Rowe Price, which trade at higher multiples. The valuation gap versus pure asset managers reflects Principal's continued exposure to spread businesses, pension risk transfer, and group insurance underwriting, which carry more capital intensity and earnings volatility than fee-only managers.
Principal Asset Management oversees approximately $500 billion in assets under management as of 2024, drawn from institutional, retail intermediary, and proprietary retirement plan clients. The AUM is diversified across asset classes including fixed income, equities, real estate equity and debt, multi-asset solutions, and a smaller alternatives book. Principal Real Estate Investors is a notable component, ranking among the largest US real estate investment managers by AUM and offering core and value-add equity strategies, commercial mortgage debt, and real estate securities. A meaningful portion of total AUM is sourced from Principal's own US retirement plan participants who invest in proprietary target-date and core menu funds, plus general account assets backing the insurance liabilities, which provides stable internal funding. Third-party institutional clients include public pension plans, insurance general accounts, sovereign wealth funds, and consultant-driven mandates. International AUM is sourced from joint ventures including CCB Principal in China and Brasilprev in Brazil, where Principal partners with local banks for distribution. Net flows tend to be positive in retirement and real estate, with periodic outflows in active fixed income that mirror industry trends across active managers.
Principal Financial Group has consistently returned a high percentage of free capital to shareholders through a combination of common stock dividends and opportunistic share repurchases, with a target capital return of roughly 75 to 85 percent of net income over multi-year periods. The company has paid a regular quarterly dividend since the 2001 IPO and has raised it annually for more than a decade, with the current annual dividend per share at approximately $2.85 to $2.95 producing a dividend yield in the high 3 percent to low 4 percent range depending on stock price. Share repurchases are funded primarily from holding company free cash flow generated by upstream dividends from the operating subsidiaries plus proceeds from divestitures such as the 2022 sale of the US individual life retail business. Over the past decade Principal has reduced share count by roughly 20 percent through buybacks. Total capital deployment to shareholders typically runs between $1.3 billion and $1.8 billion per year depending on free cash flow generation and acquisition spending. The capital return is supported by stable holding company liquidity and conservative leverage relative to peer life insurers.
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CorpDigest. "Principal Financial Group, Inc. Revenue & Financials." CorpDigest, https://corpdigest.com/company/principal-financial/financials.<div style="font-family:system-ui,sans-serif;font-size:14px;line-height:1.5;border:1px solid #e2e8f0;border-radius:8px;padding:12px 16px;max-width:520px"><strong>Principal Financial Group, Inc. reported $14B in revenue (FY2025).</strong><br>Source: <a href="https://corpdigest.com/company/principal-financial/financials" target="_blank" rel="noopener">CorpDigest — Principal Financial Group, Inc. financials</a></div>