Contrasting AXA (OTCMKTS:AXAHY) and Principal Financial Group (NASDAQ:PFG)

AXA (OTCMKTS:AXAHY) and Principal Financial Group (NASDAQ:PFG) are both large-cap finance companies, but which is the better stock? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their institutional ownership, earnings, analyst recommendations, valuation, profitability, dividends and risk.

Risk and Volatility

AXA has a beta of 0.61, meaning that its share price is 39% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Principal Financial Group has a beta of 0.88, meaning that its share price is 12% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares AXA and Principal Financial Group”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
AXA	$84.92 billion	1.19	$11.08 billion	N/A	N/A
Principal Financial Group	$15.63 billion	1.43	$1.19 billion	$6.99	14.81

AXA has higher revenue and earnings than Principal Financial Group.

Profitability

This table compares AXA and Principal Financial Group’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
AXA	N/A	N/A	N/A
Principal Financial Group	10.10%	16.25%	0.57%

Dividends

AXA pays an annual dividend of $1.98 per share and has a dividend yield of 4.3%. Principal Financial Group pays an annual dividend of $3.28 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.2%. Principal Financial Group pays out 46.9% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Principal Financial Group has raised its dividend for 2 consecutive years.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of current ratings for AXA and Principal Financial Group, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
AXA	0	0	2	1	3.33
Principal Financial Group	1	7	3	0	2.18

Principal Financial Group has a consensus price target of $98.10, suggesting a potential downside of 5.23%. Given Principal Financial Group’s higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Principal Financial Group is more favorable than AXA.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

0.1% of AXA shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 75.1% of Principal Financial Group shares are held by institutional investors. 1.1% of Principal Financial Group shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Summary

Principal Financial Group beats AXA on 10 of the 16 factors compared between the two stocks.

About AXA

AXA SA, through its subsidiaries, provides insurance, asset management, and banking services worldwide. The company operates through six segments: France; Europe; AXA XL; Asia, Africa & EME-LATAM; AXA Investment Managers; and Transversal & Other segments It offers life and savings insurance products, such as savings and retirement, other health, and personal protection products. The company also provides property and casualty insurance products, including car, home, and personal or professional liability to individual and business clients; international insurance for large corporate clients in Europe; and marine and aviation insurance services, as well as property and casualty reinsurance products. In addition, it offers asset management services in the areas of various asset classes, including equities, bonds, hedge funds, private equity, and real estate for the group’s insurance companies and their clients, and retail and institutional clients. Further, the company provides motor, household, property and general liability, health, term life, whole life, universal life, endowment, deferred and immediate annuities, and other investment-based products for personal/individual and commercial/ group customers. AXA SA was founded in 1852 and is headquartered in Paris, France.

About Principal Financial Group

Principal Financial Group, Inc. provides retirement, asset management, and insurance products and services to businesses, individuals, and institutional clients worldwide. The company operates through Retirement and Income Solutions, Principal Global Investors, Principal International, and U.S. Insurance Solutions segments. The Retirement and Income Solutions segment provides a portfolio of asset accumulation products and services for retirement savings and income. It offers products and services for defined contribution plans, including 401(k) and 403(b) plans, defined benefit pension plans, nonqualified executive benefit plans, employee stock ownership plans, equity compensation, and pension risk transfer services; individual retirement accounts; investment only products; and mutual funds, individual variable annuities, and bank products. The Principal Global Investors segment provides equity, fixed income, real estate, and other alternative investments, as well as asset allocation, stable value management, and other structured investment strategies. The Principal International segment offers pension accumulation products and services, mutual funds, asset management, income annuities, and life insurance accumulation products, as well as voluntary savings plans in Brazil, Chile, Mexico, China, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, India, and Southeast Asia. The U.S. Insurance Solutions segment provides specialty benefits, such as group dental and vision insurance, group life insurance, and group and individual disability insurance, as well as administers group dental, disability, and vision benefits; and individual life insurance products comprising universal, variable universal, indexed universal, and term life insurance products in the United States. It also offers insurance solutions for small and medium-sized businesses and their owners, as well as executives. Principal Financial Group, Inc. was founded in 1879 and is based in Des Moines, Iowa.