Employer · plans filed under one EIN
Principal Financial Group, Inc.
Des Moines, IA · Finance and insurance
Form 5500 information is as filed by the plan administrator with the Department of Labor and may be amended. Figures reflect the plan year shown, not current balances.
Principal Financial Group, Inc., based in Des Moines, Iowa, sponsors 3 retirement plans with 100 or more participants: 1 defined contribution and 2 defined benefit. Together they reported 36,394 participant records and $6.06B in net assets.
The largest is Principal Cash Balance Plan, a cash balance pension plan with 18,478 participants. A person can be counted in more than one plan, so the participant total is a count of records rather than of people.
Employer contributions across the plans were $131M and participant contributions $146M in the latest plan years; benefits paid were $602M. Schedule C compensation reported to service provider organisations totalled $10.7M.
Combined net assets moved from $1.37B in 2014 to $6.06B in 2024 (up 343%). Plan mergers and spin-offs show up here as steps in the series.
Plans
| Plan | Kind | Plan year | Participants | Net assets | Per participant | Employer / active | Sch. C compensation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Principal Cash Balance Plan | cash balance pension plan | 2024 | 18,478 | $1.46B | $78,889 | $4,432 | $9.6M |
| The Principal Select Savings Plan | ESOP with a 401(k) feature | 2024 | 17,643 | $4.58B | $259,567 | $6,008 | $1.0M |
| Principal Pension Plan for Certain Former Agents | cash balance pension plan | 2024 | 273 | $26.8M | $98,283 | — | $67K |
| US median, plan year 2024: DC plans $53,102 per participant, $2,175 employer contribution per active participant; DB plans $86,221 and $10,244. | |||||||
Trend by plan year
| Plan year | Plans | Participant records | Net assets | Employer contributions | Participant contributions |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 3 | 36,394 | $6.06B | $131M | $146M |
| 2023 | 3 | 36,904 | $5.83B | $128M | $140M |
| 2022 | 3 | 35,800 | $5.18B | $119M | $124M |
| 2021 | 2 | 33,857 | $6.22B | $103M | $106M |
| 2020 | 2 | 31,821 | $5.49B | $129M | $94.5M |
| 2019 | 2 | 31,721 | $4.77B | $81.7M | $90.3M |
| 2018 | 2 | 31,578 | $3.95B | $50.7M | $86.9M |
| 2017 | 2 | 30,911 | $4.31B | $214M | $81.9M |
| 2016 | 2 | 30,860 | $3.50B | $112M | $77.7M |
| 2014 | 1 | 20,398 | $1.37B | $115M | $0 |
History of the plans listed above, in the years each filed the full Form 5500 with 100 or more participants. Plans that have since terminated are not included.
Service providers
| Organisation | Services reported | Plans | Compensation reported |
|---|---|---|---|
| Principal Global Investors LLC | Investment advisory (plan) | 1 | $6,197,860 |
| Principal Life Insurance Company | Contract Administrator; Participant loan processing | 3 | $3,274,263 |
| State Street | Other services | 1 | $1,156,265 |
| Aksia | Investment advisory (plan) | 1 | $21,010 |
| Idc | Other services | 1 | $11,616 |
| Morningstar Investment Management L | Investment advisory (participants) | 1 | $0 |
Organisations paid $5,000 or more by any of these plans, from Schedule C. Individuals are not shown.
Questions and answers
How many retirement plans does Principal Financial Group, Inc. have?
3 plans with 100 or more participants filed Form 5500 under its employer identification number for the latest plan years: Principal Cash Balance Plan, The Principal Select Savings Plan and Principal Pension Plan for Certain Former Agents. Smaller plans and plans filed under a subsidiary's number are not grouped here.
How much does Principal Financial Group, Inc. contribute to its plans?
$131,067,723 in employer contributions across these plans in their latest plan years, about $5,228 per active participant record. Form 5500 reports totals and not the match or accrual formula.
Who provides services to these plans?
Schedule C filings name Principal Global Investors LLC, Principal Life Insurance Company, State Street and Aksia and others. Only organisations paid $5,000 or more by a plan are listed on Schedule C.
Where does this come from?
Form 5500 annual reports filed with the Department of Labor's EFAST2 system, from the EBSA research files, with filings received through 24 Aug 2026. Figures are as filed and may be amended.
Provenance
Source: U.S. Department of Labor, Employee Benefits Security Administration, Form 5500 research files, public domain, with filings received through 24 Aug 2026. Plans are grouped by the sponsor's employer identification number exactly as filed; a company that files under several EINs appears as several employers. See the methodology and corrections.