Principal Financial Stock Outlook: Is Wall Street Bullish or Bearish?

Principal Financial Stock Outlook: Is Wall Street Bullish or Bearish?

Kritika Sarmah

Mon, August 24, 2026 at 3:24 PM GMT+3 2 min read

• ^GSPC +0.32%
• PFG -0.27%

Headquartered in Des Moines, Iowa, Principal Financial Group, Inc. (PFG) is a global financial services company providing retirement plans, employee benefits, investment management, and financial solutions. With a market capitalization of $23.7 billion, the company helps individuals and businesses build wealth, prepare for retirement, manage investments, and achieve long-term financial goals through personalized products and expertise.

Shares of this leading financial services company have considerably outperformed the broader market over the past year. PFG has gained 40.8% over this period, while the broader S&P 500 Index ($SPX) has climbed nearly 20.5%. Likewise, the stock has continued to outperform the index in 2026, rising 25.6% year-to-date, compared with the S&P 500's 12.1% gain over the same period.

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Compared with the iShares U.S. Insurance ETF (IAK), PFG has also outperformed, as the ETF has advanced 8.1% over the past year and 5.8% year-to-date.

On July 27, Principal Financial Group reported its Q2 FY2026 earnings, with shares jumping 1.7%. Non-GAAP net income attributable to PFG rose 23.8% year-over-year to $535 million, while non-GAAP operating earnings increased 11.8% to $547 million. Non-GAAP operating earnings per diluted share rose 15.7% to $2.50 from the prior-year quarter.

Principal returned $427 million to shareholders, including $250 million in share repurchases, and raised its quarterly dividend by 8% to $0.84 per share.

For the fiscal year ending in December 2026, analysts expect PFG's diluted EPS to increase 15.7% year-over-year to $9.57. However, PFG has surpassed consensus EPS estimates in two of the past four quarters, while missing expectations in the other two.

Based on the 14 analysts covering PFG stock, the consensus rating is a "Hold." The rating is based on one "Strong Buy," one "Moderate Buy," 10 "Holds," one "Moderate Sell," and one "Strong Sell."

The analyst configuration has remained consistent over the past few months.

On August 17, Raymond James raised its price target for Principal Financial to $121 from $111 while maintaining an Outperform rating.

PFG shares are currently trading above the mean price target of $110, and the Street-high price target of $125 suggests a 12.9% premium.

On the date of publication, Kritika Sarmah did not have (either directly or indirectly) positions in any of the securities mentioned in this article. All information and data in this article is solely for informational purposes. This article was originally published on Barchart.com