CNO Financial Group, Inc. vs PRINCIPAL FINANCIAL GROUP INC, two Managed Care stocks. A side-by-side on valuation, growth, margins, returns, and what each price is betting.
Principal earns 13.2% on equity to CNO's 9.8%, and both do it the insurance way, on thin returns over enormous asset bases, 0.5% and 0.6% on assets. The businesses rhyme at different registers: Principal manages retirement plans and group benefits at $24B of market value, CNO sells life and supplemental health policies to middle-income seniors at $5B. The market prices them close, 15.5 and 21.1 times earnings, with the premium oddly on the smaller franchise. Principal pays the bigger dividend, 2.9% against 1.3%, and shows the bigger float-flattered cash figure, 15.8% against 13.6%. Two unglamorous compounders in adjacent aisles; the six-turn spread is hard to defend off these pages alone.
Comparison updated 2026-07-10.
| Metric | CNO | PFG |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $52.52 | $107.80 |
| Market cap | $5.0B | $23.7B |
| Sector | Managed Care | Managed Care |
| Stage | Mature | Mature |
| P/E | 21.1 | 15.5 |
| P/B | 2.02 | 2.00 |
| P/S | 1.12 | 1.54 |
| EV/EBITDA | 7.6 | — |
| Revenue growth | +5.0% | -0.2% |
| Operating margin | 12.6% | — |
| Net margin | 5.4% | 10.1% |
| Return on equity | 9.8% | 13.2% |
| Return on assets | 0.6% | 0.5% |
| Return on invested capital | 18.0% | — |
| FCF yield | 13.6% | 15.8% |
| Dividend yield | 1.3% | 2.9% |
| Debt / equity | 0.00 | 0.33 |
| Altman Z (solvency) | 0.30 | 0.17 |
| Piotroski F (quality) | 7 / 9 | 6 / 9 |
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The stronger value is highlighted per metric where one is strictly better on that single number; it is not an overall verdict on either company. For informational and research purposes only. Not investment advice. Not a recommendation to buy, sell, or hold any security. boothcheck is not a registered investment adviser. Past performance does not guarantee future results.