PFG vs VOYA: Which Is the Better Buy in 2026?

Same yardstick, side by side (as of August 2026). Valuation lined up like this is most meaningful for two names in the same corner of the market, which these are. Figures are approximate; verify before investing.

Reading it: VOYA is the cheaper of the two on forward earnings, but cheaper is not the same as better. Pair the valuation with growth (how far the forward P/E sits below the trailing P/E) and risk (beta) before you decide.

The metrics above tell you which is the marginally better business. The bigger risk for most people is not picking the slightly worse stock, it is over-concentrating. PFG and VOYA share themes, so owning both, or adding either to what you already hold, can quietly push a large share of your portfolio into one bet.

This is the part a generic comparison page cannot answer, because it depends on what you own. Connect your brokerage and Walnut shows your real, combined PFG and VOYA exposure, flags overlap with your existing positions, and tells you if adding one would tip you past a concentration you are comfortable with, read-only by default, with your login staying at your broker. Walnut is not an investment adviser.

Principal Financial Group, Inc. (Nasdaq: PFG) is a global financial services company headquartered in Des Moines, Iowa, that serves individuals and businesses across retirement, investment management, and insurance. Its business is organized around a few core engines: Retirement and Income Solutions (workplace retirement plans, annuities, and income products in the United States), Global Asset Management (the Principal Global Investors and Principal International operations that manage money for institutional and retail clients), and U.S. Insurance Solutions (specialty benefits like dental, vision, disability, and life insurance, plus individual life). The company earns money from fees on the assets it manages and administers, spread income on its insurance and annuity products, and insurance premiums, so a large share of its revenue is tied to the level of assets under management, which reached about $770 billion in early 2026.

Full PFG guide

Voya Financial, Inc. (NYSE: VOYA) is a New York headquartered retirement, employee benefits and investment management company with roughly 11,000 employees (about 71% US-based and 29% in its services center in India) and more than ~18 million individual customer relationships. It reports in three segments. Retirement is the largest: it administers defined contribution plans for approximately 45,000 US employers, crossed ~10 million participant accounts during the second quarter of 2026, and held ~$863 billion of total client assets as of June 30, 2026, up ~14% year over year after the completed integration of the OneAmerica full-service retirement business. Voya Investment Management ran ~$377 billion of assets under management plus ~$63 billion of assets under advisory, with Allianz holding a ~24% stake in the VIM Holdings entity. Employee Benefits sells group life, disability, voluntary products and medical stop-loss, with ~$3.59 billion of annualized in-force premiums and fees.

Full VOYA guide

Both fit overlapping themes, but they are not interchangeable. The useful comparison is which set of drivers and risks you want exposure to.

• PFG drivers: Retirement and asset management fee growth; International pension franchise.
• VOYA drivers: The stop-loss repricing cycle; Retirement scale after OneAmerica.

A faster-growing, richer-valued name usually swings harder, so it suits a longer horizon and a higher tolerance for volatility; a steadier, more cash-generative business suits a more conservative or income-minded investor. The honest test is which set of risks you could hold through a drawdown: Because a large share of Principal's revenue comes from fees on managed assets, the stock is sensitive to equity and bond market declines, which shrink assets under management and fee income. For VOYA, medical stop-loss claims are reported and reserved on a policy-year basis with most policies renewing in January, so a bad trend surfaces in concentrated bursts rather than gradually, and the ~$91 million of adverse prior-year development booked in the first half of 2026 shows the reserve estimate can still move against the company.

Growth-minded investors who believe the theme has years to run tend to accept the richer multiple for more upside; value-minded investors lean toward the cheaper forward earnings and steadier profile. Pick PFG if you believe its drivers more; VOYA if you believe its. Many investors hold both, but since they share themes, that is a concentrated bet, not diversification. Decide deliberately and check overlap. For the full detail, see the PFG and VOYA guides.

PFG. Principal trades at a modest earnings multiple typical of diversified financials, with a roughly 3% dividend yield and a mid-teens operating return on equity. GAAP EPS fell in 2025 on items affecting net income, but non-GAAP operating EPS grew (up about 14% year over year in Q1 2026). Valuation and results are closely tied to the level of equity markets and asset flows, so figures move with market conditions.

VOYA. The gap between a trailing multiple near ~16.9x and a forward multiple near ~9.5x is the whole debate in one number: the market is pricing a recovery in Employee Benefits earnings that has not yet appeared in reported results. Shares traded around ~$100 in late August 2026 against a 52-week range of roughly ~$64.50 to ~$103.85, so the stock has already re-rated substantially from its lows since the activist campaign became public in April. Shareholders' equity was ~$4.69 billion at June 30, 2026, and the company held ~$200 million of excess capital at the holding company after repaying maturing debt, down from ~$650 million three months earlier.

Headline figures (approximate, July 2026): PFG shows revenue (fy2025) ~$15.6 billion, net income (fy2025, gaap) ~$1.19 billion, diluted eps (fy2025, gaap) ~$5.32 (down from ~$6.77 in 2024), assets under management (q1 2026) ~$770 billion; VOYA shows revenue (ttm) ~$8.17B, net income to common (ttm) ~$567M, q2 2026 adjusted operating eps ~$1.51 (vs ~$2.46 a year earlier), market cap ~$9.1B at ~$100 per share.

PFG and VOYA are related but distinct: same themes, different businesses and risks. Neither wins in the abstract; the right pick is whichever thesis you actually believe, sized so you are not over-concentrated in one theme. Walnut can show your combined PFG and VOYA exposure against your real portfolio. It is not an investment adviser.