Fund Evaluator:
Principal LifeTime 2020 Institutional (PLWIX)
Follow This Fund
Best Performing in Target-Date 2020 Over the Last Year
| 12.5% | Fidelity Advisor Freedom Blend 2020 Z (FJAIX) |
| 12.1% | Fidelity Advisor Sust Trgt Dt 2020 Z (FSWKX) |
| 11.9% | T. Rowe Price Retirement 2020 (TRRBX) |
| 11.4% | Fidelity Advisor Freedom 2020 Z (FIJLX) |
| 11.0% | Fidelity Freedom Index 2020 Investor (FPIFX) |
Fund Details
Principal LifeTime 2020 Institutional Overview
Principal LifeTime 2020 Institutional (PLWIX) is an actively managed Allocation Target-Date 2020 fund. Principal Funds launched the fund in 2001.
The investment seeks a total return consisting of long-term growth of capital and current income. The fund operates as a "target date fund" that invests according to an asset allocation strategy designed for investors having a retirement investment goal close to the year in 2020. It is a fund of funds and invests in underlying funds of Principal Exchange-Traded Funds (“PETF”) and Principal Funds, Inc. (“PFI”). Its underlying funds consist of domestic and foreign equity funds, fixed-income funds, real asset funds, and other funds that aim to offer diversification beyond traditional equity and fixed-income securities.
About Principal LifeTime 2020 Institutional (PLWIX)
There are 5 members of the management team with an average tenure of 6.48 years: Todd Jablonski (2025), Scott Smith (2017), James Fennessey (2007), May Tong (2025), Chad Severin (2025). Management tenure is more important for actively managed funds than passive index funds.
The fund has 2 primary benchmarks: S&P Target Date 2020 TR USD index with a weighting of 100% and Bloomberg US Agg Bond TR USD index with a weighting of 100%. Principal LifeTime 2020 Institutional has 21 securities in its portfolio. The top 10 holdings constitute 90.6% of the fund’s assets. The fund meets the SEC requirement of being classified as a diversified fund. The fund is not considered to have an ESG focus with its investment selection and management.
Principal LifeTime 2020 Institutional is part of the Allocation global asset class and is within the Allocation fund group. Principal LifeTime 2020 Institutional has 17.6% of its portfolio invested in foreign issues. The overall assets allocated to domestic stock is 28.3%. There is 14.0% allocated to foreign stock, and 0.1% is allocated to preferred stocks. The bond allocation as a percentage of total assets is 58.7% (55.2% domestic bond, 3.6% foreign bond and 0.0% convertible bond). Principal LifeTime 2020 Institutional has -1.2% of the portfolio in cash.
Assets Under Management
The fund has $873 million in total assets, which is below the $912 million average for the Target-Date 2020 category. Normally, lower assets under management translates to higher average expense ratios, and greater total assets are desired. However, for some investment categories, such as small-cap investing, it may be difficult for the manager to fully employ the desired active strategy if assets grow too large or too quickly.
PLWIX Performance and Fees
The expense ratio measures how much of a fund’s assets are used for administrative expenses and operating expenses, including adviser fees and fees for the transfer agent and custodial services. The Principal LifeTime 2020 Institutional expense ratio is average compared to funds in the Target-Date 2020 category. Principal LifeTime 2020 Institutional has an expense ratio of 0.48%, which is 15% lower than its category average, making the fund expense ratio grade a C. While it is difficult to predict returns, it is known that high annual expense ratios reduce your rate of return, and excessive fees are difficult to overcome. Active management normally comes with higher expense ratios than passive index management. Certain investment categories such as small company and foreign also normally have higher expense ratios. It is best to compare fund expense ratios against the category averages for meaningful assessments.
High portfolio turnover can translate to higher expenses and lower aftertax returns. Principal LifeTime 2020 Institutional has a portfolio turnover rate of 25%, indicating that holds its assets around 0.0 years. By way of comparison, the average portfolio turnover is 20% for the Target-Date 2020 category.
Recently, in the month of July 2026, Principal LifeTime 2020 Institutional returned -0.3%, which earned it a grade of A, as the Target-Date 2020 category had an average return of -0.7%. The letter grades of A, B, C, D and F are based upon relative rankings within the investment category. A grade of A, for example, would indicate that the return is in the highest 20% for that time period compared to all funds in that category.
Principal LifeTime 2020 Institutional has a trailing yield of 3.13%, which is above the 2.79% category average. The fund normally distributes its income annually and its capital gains annually.
It’s natural to seek the best-performing investments, but you must consider the relationship between risk and return and the impact of costs and taxes on your realized returns.
Principal LifeTime 2020 Institutional Grades
Year to date, the fund has returned 4.0%, 1.1 percentage points worse than the category, which translates into a grade of F. The fund has returned 9.0% over the past year (grade of F), 8.8% over the past three years (grade of F) and 4.0% per year over the past five years (grade of F) and 6.6% per year over the past 10 years (grade of C).
For more mutual fund grades, analysis and screening tools to help your investment discovery, join AAII for a $2, full-access trial. Learn more here: https://invest.aaii.com/membership.
Otherwise, for more information about Principal LifeTime 2020 Institutional, including its riskiness, submit your email to unlock the rest of the article.
Gain access to exclusive AAII member-only content.
PLWIX Trailing NAV Total Returns Data as of 7/31/26
| Last Month |
Last Quarter |
Ann'l. 1Yr |
Ann'l. 3Yr |
Ann'l. 5Yr |
Ann'l. 10Yr |
|
| PLWIX Return (NAV) | -0.3% | 1.4% | 9.0% | 8.8% | 4.0% | 6.6% |
| PLWIX Grade | A | B | F | F | F | C |
| +/- Category | 0.4% | 0.2% | -2.0% | -0.8% | -0.5% | -0.1% |
| Target-Date 2020 Avg | -0.7% | 1.3% | 11.0% | 9.6% | 4.5% | 6.7% |
| PLWIX Tax Cost Ratio | na | na | 2.8% | 2.2% | 2.3% | 2.1% |
PLWIX Annual NAV Total ReturnsData as of 7/31/26
| 2026 | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | |
| PLWIX Return (NAV) | 4.0% | 11.3% | 7.4% | 12.2% | -14.3% | 9.1% | 12.7% | 18.4% | -5.7% | 15.0% | 5.8% |
| PLWIX Grade | F | F | C | B | C | C | C | A | F | A | F |
| +/- Category | -1.1% | -1.6% | -0.2% | 0.5% | -0.0% | -0.2% | 0.8% | 1.3% | -1.2% | 1.6% | -0.8% |
| Target-Date 2020 Avg | 5.1% | 12.9% | 7.6% | 11.7% | -14.3% | 9.3% | 11.9% | 17.1% | -4.5% | 13.3% | 6.7% |
| Risk Measures | |
| Standard Deviation: | 7.1% |
| Total Risk Index: | 0.58 - Below Average |
| Category Risk Index: | 0.95 - Below Average |
| Category Risk Grade: | B (34% Rank) |
| Beta: | 0.74 |
| R-Squared: | 97% |
| Leveraged Fund: | No |
| Inverse Fund: | No |
| Portfolio Characteristics | |
| Equity Investment Style: | Large-Cap Blend |
| Bond Investment Style: | High Quality Moderate Sensitivity |
| Yield: | 3.1% |
| Dividend Distribution: | Annually |
| Cap Gains Distribution: | Annually |
| Total Assets: | $1687 Mil |
| Fund Total Assets: | $ 873 Mil |
| Share Class Type: | Inst |
| Portfolio Turnover: | 26% |
Management Team
| Number of Managers: 5 | |||
| Longest Tenure: 19.2 years | |||
| Average Tenure: 6.5 years | |||
| Managers (Year): Fennessey James (2007), Smith Scott (2017), Jablonski Todd (2025), Tong May (2025), Severin Chad (2025) | |||
Portfolio Composition (as of 6/30/26)
| # of Holdings: | 21 |
| % in Top 10 Holdings: | 90.6% |
| Fund is Non-Diversified: | No |
| % in Foreign Issues: | 17.6% |
Portfolio Allocation |
|
| Domestic Stock: | 28.3% |
| Foreign Stock: | 14.0% |
| Preferred Stock: | 0.1% |
| Domestic Bond: | 55.2% |
| Foreign Bond: | 3.6% |
| Convertible Bond: | 0.0% |
| Other: | 0.0% |
| Cash: | -1.2% |
Purchase Information
| Fund Family: | Principal Funds |
| Phone Number: | 800-222-5852 |
| Website: | www.principalfunds.com |
| Status: | Open |
| Inception Date: | March 1, 2001 |
| Min. Initial Purchase: | $ 0 |
| Min. Initial IRA Purchase: | $ 0 |
| True No-Load: | Yes |
| Front Load Maximum: | 0.00% |
| Deferred Charge Maximum: | 0.00% |
| Redemption Charge Maximum: | 0.00% |
| 12b-1 Fee: | na |
Expenses and Fees | |
| Expense Ratio (%): | 0.48% ( Rating : Avg ) |
| Category Average Expense Ratio (%): | 0.56% |
| Share Class: | Principal LifeTime 2020 Institutional |
| Min. Subsequent Purchase: | $ 0 |
| Min. Subsequent IRA Purchase: | $ 0 |
