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Side-by-side financial comparison of Principal Financial Group (PFG) and Xcel Energy (XEL). Click either name above to swap in a different company.

Principal Financial Group is the larger business by last-quarter revenue ($4.6B vs $4.0B, roughly 1.1× Xcel Energy). Xcel Energy runs the higher net margin — 13.8% vs 11.3%, a 2.5% gap on every dollar of revenue. On growth, Xcel Energy posted the faster year-over-year revenue change (2.9% vs -3.7%). Over the past eight quarters, Xcel Energy's revenue compounded faster (15.2% CAGR vs 6.3%).

Principal Financial Group, Inc. (PFG) is an American global financial investment management and insurance company headquartered in Des Moines, Iowa, United States.

Xcel Energy Inc. is a U.S. regulated electric utility and natural gas delivery company based in Minneapolis, Minnesota, serving approximately 3.9 million electricity customers and 2.2 million natural gas customers across parts of eight states as of mid-2025. It consists of four operating subsidiaries: Northern States Power-Minnesota, Northern States Power-Wisconsin, Public Service Company of Colorado, and Southwestern Public Service Co.

PFG vs XEL — Head-to-Head

Bigger by revenue
PFG
PFG
1.1× larger
PFG
$4.6B
$4.0B
XEL
Growing faster (revenue YoY)
XEL
XEL
+6.6% gap
XEL
2.9%
-3.7%
PFG
Higher net margin
XEL
XEL
2.5% more per $
XEL
13.8%
11.3%
PFG
Faster 2-yr revenue CAGR
XEL
XEL
Annualised
XEL
15.2%
6.3%
PFG

Income Statement — Q4 FY2025 vs Q1 FY2026

Metric
PFG
PFG
XEL
XEL
Revenue
$4.6B
$4.0B
Net Profit
$517.0M
$556.0M
Gross Margin
Operating Margin
18.8%
Net Margin
11.3%
13.8%
Revenue YoY
-3.7%
2.9%
Net Profit YoY
-42.9%
EPS (diluted)
$2.30

Green = leading value per metric. Periods may differ when fiscal calendars don't align.

8-Quarter Revenue & Profit Trend

Side-by-side quarterly history. Quarters aligned by calendar period so offset fiscal years line up.

Revenue
PFG
PFG
XEL
XEL
Q1 26
$4.0B
Q4 25
$4.6B
$3.6B
Q3 25
$3.7B
$3.9B
Q2 25
$3.7B
$3.3B
Q1 25
$3.7B
$3.9B
Q4 24
$4.8B
$3.1B
Q3 24
$3.0B
$3.6B
Q2 24
$4.3B
$3.0B
Net Profit
PFG
PFG
XEL
XEL
Q1 26
$556.0M
Q4 25
$517.0M
$567.0M
Q3 25
$213.8M
$524.0M
Q2 25
$406.2M
$444.0M
Q1 25
$48.1M
$483.0M
Q4 24
$905.4M
$464.0M
Q3 24
$-220.0M
$682.0M
Q2 24
$353.1M
$302.0M
Operating Margin
PFG
PFG
XEL
XEL
Q1 26
18.8%
Q4 25
16.3%
Q3 25
19.1%
Q2 25
17.6%
Q1 25
17.3%
Q4 24
11.1%
Q3 24
25.0%
Q2 24
14.8%
Net Margin
PFG
PFG
XEL
XEL
Q1 26
13.8%
Q4 25
11.3%
15.9%
Q3 25
5.8%
13.4%
Q2 25
11.1%
13.5%
Q1 25
1.3%
12.4%
Q4 24
19.1%
14.9%
Q3 24
-7.3%
18.7%
Q2 24
8.2%
10.0%
EPS (diluted)
PFG
PFG
XEL
XEL
Q1 26
Q4 25
$2.30
$0.95
Q3 25
$0.95
$0.88
Q2 25
$1.79
$0.75
Q1 25
$0.21
$0.84
Q4 24
$3.92
$0.81
Q3 24
$-0.95
$1.21
Q2 24
$1.49
$0.54

Balance Sheet & Financial Strength

Snapshot of each company's liquidity, leverage and book value from the latest quarter.

Metric
PFG
PFG
XEL
XEL
Cash + ST InvestmentsLiquidity on hand
$4.4B
Total DebtLower is stronger
$3.9B
$35.6B
Stockholders' EquityBook value
$11.9B
Total Assets
$341.4B
Debt / EquityLower = less leverage
0.33×

8-quarter trend — quarters aligned by calendar period.

Cash + ST Investments
PFG
PFG
XEL
XEL
Q1 26
Q4 25
$4.4B
Q3 25
$5.1B
$1.1B
Q2 25
$3.7B
$1.5B
Q1 25
$3.9B
$1.1B
Q4 24
$4.2B
$179.0M
Q3 24
$6.2B
$1.5B
Q2 24
$4.8B
$1.6B
Total Debt
PFG
PFG
XEL
XEL
Q1 26
$35.6B
Q4 25
$3.9B
$31.8B
Q3 25
$3.9B
$32.0B
Q2 25
$3.9B
$31.1B
Q1 25
$4.3B
$29.4B
Q4 24
$4.0B
$27.3B
Q3 24
$3.9B
$27.5B
Q2 24
$3.9B
$27.7B
Stockholders' Equity
PFG
PFG
XEL
XEL
Q1 26
Q4 25
$11.9B
$23.6B
Q3 25
$11.7B
$21.2B
Q2 25
$11.4B
$21.0B
Q1 25
$11.2B
$19.8B
Q4 24
$11.1B
$19.5B
Q3 24
$11.2B
$19.4B
Q2 24
$11.0B
$18.0B
Total Assets
PFG
PFG
XEL
XEL
Q1 26
Q4 25
$341.4B
$81.4B
Q3 25
$334.5B
$79.2B
Q2 25
$323.1B
$75.3B
Q1 25
$313.0B
$72.7B
Q4 24
$313.7B
$70.0B
Q3 24
$322.9B
$69.3B
Q2 24
$308.8B
$67.9B
Debt / Equity
PFG
PFG
XEL
XEL
Q1 26
Q4 25
0.33×
1.35×
Q3 25
0.34×
1.51×
Q2 25
0.34×
1.48×
Q1 25
0.39×
1.48×
Q4 24
0.36×
1.40×
Q3 24
0.35×
1.42×
Q2 24
0.36×
1.54×

Cash Flow & Capital Efficiency

How much cash each business actually produces after reinvestment. Cash flow is harder to manipulate than net income.

Metric
PFG
PFG
XEL
XEL
Operating Cash FlowLast quarter
$1.7B
Free Cash FlowOCF − Capex
FCF MarginFCF / Revenue
Capex IntensityCapex / Revenue
Cash ConversionOCF / Net Profit
3.37×
TTM Free Cash FlowTrailing 4 quarters

8-quarter trend — quarters aligned by calendar period.

Operating Cash Flow
PFG
PFG
XEL
XEL
Q1 26
Q4 25
$1.7B
$209.0M
Q3 25
$1.0B
$1.8B
Q2 25
$811.9M
$1.1B
Q1 25
$977.3M
$1.0B
Q4 24
$1.5B
$664.0M
Q3 24
$1.1B
$1.7B
Q2 24
$1.4B
$1.2B
Free Cash Flow
PFG
PFG
XEL
XEL
Q1 26
Q4 25
$-3.2B
Q3 25
$-1.3B
Q2 25
$-1.3B
Q1 25
$-960.0M
Q4 24
$-1.6B
Q3 24
$-42.0M
Q2 24
$-641.0M
FCF Margin
PFG
PFG
XEL
XEL
Q1 26
Q4 25
-90.7%
Q3 25
-33.0%
Q2 25
-40.9%
Q1 25
-24.6%
Q4 24
-49.8%
Q3 24
-1.2%
Q2 24
-21.2%
Capex Intensity
PFG
PFG
XEL
XEL
Q1 26
Q4 25
96.5%
Q3 25
78.0%
Q2 25
73.8%
Q1 25
50.9%
Q4 24
71.1%
Q3 24
48.8%
Q2 24
60.5%
Cash Conversion
PFG
PFG
XEL
XEL
Q1 26
Q4 25
3.37×
0.37×
Q3 25
4.70×
3.37×
Q2 25
2.00×
2.43×
Q1 25
20.32×
2.13×
Q4 24
1.61×
1.43×
Q3 24
2.55×
Q2 24
4.05×
3.94×

Financial Flow Comparison

Revenue → gross profit → operating profit → net profit for each company.

Revenue Breakdown by Segment

PFG
PFG

Segment Retirement And Income Solutions$1.6B36%
Segment Benefits And Protection$1.1B23%
Other$582.8M13%
Segment Principal Asset Management$465.6M10%
Subsegment Investment Management$449.4M10%
Administrative Service$152.2M3%
Subsegment International Pension$91.2M2%
Segment Corporate$73.0M2%
Subsegment Life Insurance$26.1M1%
Financial Service Other$25.1M1%
Residential Mortgage$7.4M0%
Subsegment Specialty Benefits$3.7M0%
Deposit Account$3.4M0%
Commission Income$1.8M0%

XEL
XEL

Electric$3.0B74%
Natural gas$1.0B26%

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