PRINCIPAL CAPITAL APPRECIATION ACCOUNT
Class 1 and Class 2 Shares
Principal Variable Contracts Funds, Inc. Summary Prospectus May 1, 2026
Before you invest, you may want to review the Fund’s Prospectus, which contains more information about the Fund and its risks. You can find the Fund’s Prospectus, Statement of Additional Information, Reports to Shareholders, and other information about the Fund online at www.PrincipalAM.com/PVCProspectuses. You can also get this information at no cost by calling 1-800-222-5852 or by sending an email request to prospectus@principalfunds.com.
The Fund’s Prospectus and Statement of Additional Information, both dated May 1, 2026, as may be amended or supplemented, are incorporated by reference into this Summary Prospectus.
NOTICE: On March 10, 2026, the Fund’s Board of Directors approved a change to the Fund’s diversification classification from “diversified” to “non-diversified” and a change to the related fundamental investment restriction (together, the “Proposed Change”). Fund shareholders of record on April 13, 2026, are entitled to vote on the Proposed Change at a Special Meeting of Shareholders of the Fund tentatively scheduled for June 25, 2026. Additional information about the Proposed Change will be provided in the Proxy Statement that is expected to be sent to record date Fund shareholders on or about April 20, 2026. The Proposed Change, if approved by Fund shareholders, is expected to be effective on or about July 1, 2026. However, the Fund’s officers have the discretion to change these dates.
Objective
The Fund seeks to provide long-term growth of capital.
Fees and Expenses of the Fund
This table describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy, hold, and sell shares of the Fund. You may pay other fees, such as brokerage commissions and other fees to financial intermediaries, which are not reflected in the table and examples below. These fees and expenses do not reflect the fees and expenses of any variable insurance contract that may invest in the Fund and would be higher if they did.
Annual Fund Operating Expenses
(expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment)
| Share Class | ||||||||
| Class 1 | Class 2 | |||||||
| Management Fees | 0.63% | 0.63% | ||||||
| Distribution and/or Service (12b-1) Fees | N/A | 0.25% | ||||||
| Other Expenses | 0.00% | 0.00% | ||||||
| Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses | 0.63% | 0.88% | ||||||
Example
This Example is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in the Fund with the cost of investing in other mutual funds. The Example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then redeem all of your shares at the end of those periods. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the Fund’s operating expenses remain the same. If separate account expenses and contract-level expenses were included, expenses would be higher. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be:
| 1 year | 3 years | 5 years | 10 years | |||||||||||
| Principal Capital Appreciation Account - Class 1 | $64 | $202 | $351 | $786 | ||||||||||
| Principal Capital Appreciation Account - Class 2 | 90 | 281 | 488 | 1,084 | ||||||||||
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Portfolio Turnover
The Fund pays transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or “turns over” its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs. These costs, which are not reflected in Annual Fund Operating Expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund’s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 58.0% of the average value of its portfolio.
Principal Investment Strategies
The Fund invests primarily in equity securities of U.S. companies with any market capitalization, but it has a greater exposure to large market capitalization companies than small or medium market capitalization companies. Although there is no restriction on the size of the companies in which the Fund invests, most of the Fund's investments typically include companies with a market capitalization over $10 billion at the time of purchase. Those managing the Fund’s investments seek to invest in securities of businesses that they believe are trading at a discount to their private market value (i.e., the value of the business if it was sold), have a competitive advantage, and/or that have barriers to entry in their respective industries.
On or about July 1, 2026, subject to shareholder approval, add the following:
The Fund is considered non-diversified, which means it can invest a higher percentage of assets in securities of individual issuers than a diversified fund. As a result, changes in the value of a single investment could cause greater fluctuations in the Fund's share price than would occur in a more diversified fund.
Principal Risks
The value of your investment in the Fund changes with the value of the Fund’s investments. Many factors affect that value, and it is possible to lose money by investing in the Fund. An investment in the Fund is not a deposit of a bank and is not insured or guaranteed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or any other government agency. The principal risks of investing in the Fund are listed below in alphabetical order and not in order of significance.
Equity Securities Risk. A variety of factors can negatively impact the value of equity securities held by a fund, including a decline in the issuer’s financial condition, unfavorable performance of the issuer’s sector or industry, or changes in response to overall market and economic conditions. A fund’s principal market segment(s) (such as market capitalization or style) may underperform other market segments or the equity markets as a whole.
•Smaller Companies Risk. Investments in smaller companies may involve greater risk and price volatility than investments in larger, more mature companies. Smaller companies may have limited product lines, markets, or financial resources; lack the competitive strength of larger companies; have less experienced managers; or depend on a few key employees. Their securities often are less widely held and trade less frequently and in lesser quantities, and their market prices often fluctuate more, than securities of larger companies.
On or about July 1, 2026, subject to shareholder approval, add Non-Diversification Risk .
Non-Diversification Risk . A non-diversified fund may invest a high percentage of its assets in the securities of a small number of issuers and is more likely than diversified funds to be significantly affected by a specific security’s poor performance.
Redemption and Large Transaction Risk. Ownership of the Fund’s shares may be concentrated in one or a few large investors (such as funds of funds, institutional investors, and asset allocation programs) that may redeem or purchase shares in large quantities. These transactions may cause the Fund to sell securities to meet redemptions or to invest additional cash at times it would not otherwise do so, which may result in increased transaction costs, increased expenses, changes to expense ratios, and adverse effects to Fund performance. Such transactions may also accelerate the realization of taxable income if sales of portfolio securities result in gains. Moreover, reallocations by large shareholders among share classes of a fund may result in changes to the expense ratios of affected classes, which may increase the expenses paid by shareholders of the class that experienced the redemption.
Performance
The following information provides some indication of the risks of investing in the Fund. Past performance is not necessarily an indication of how the Fund will perform in the future. You may get updated performance information by calling 1-800-222-5852.
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The bar chart shows changes in the Fund’s Class 1 performance from year to year. The table shows how the Fund’s average annual returns for 1, 5, and 10 years (or, if shorter, the life of the Fund) compare with those of one or more broad measures of market performance. Performance figures for the Fund do not include any separate account expenses, cost of insurance, or other contract-level expenses; total returns for the Fund would be lower if such expenses were included.
Total Returns as of December 31
| Highest return for a quarter during the period of the bar chart above: | Q2 2020 | 19.79% | ||||||
| Lowest return for a quarter during the period of the bar chart above: | Q1 2020 | (19.40)% | ||||||
Average Annual Total Returns
For the periods ended December 31, 2025
| 1 Year | 5 Years | 10 Years | |||||||||
| Principal Capital Appreciation Account - Class 1 | 13.52% | 13.82% | 14.35% | ||||||||
| Principal Capital Appreciation Account - Class 2 | 13.22% | 13.53% | 14.07% | ||||||||
Russell 1000 Index (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses, or taxes) | 17.37% | 13.59% | 14.59% | ||||||||
Investment Advisor and Portfolio Managers
Principal Global Investors, LLC
•Daniel R. Coleman (since 2010), Portfolio Manager
•Theodore Jayne (since 2015), Portfolio Manager
Tax Information
The Fund intends to comply with applicable variable asset diversification regulations. Taxation to you will depend on what you do with your variable life insurance or variable annuity contract. See your variable product prospectus for information about the tax implications of investing in the Fund.
Payments to Broker-Dealers and Other Financial Intermediaries
If you purchase through a broker-dealer or other financial intermediary (such as an insurance company), the Fund and its related companies may pay the intermediary for the sale of Fund shares and related services. These payments may create a conflict of interest by influencing the broker-dealer or other intermediary and your salesperson to recommend the Fund over another investment, to recommend one Fund or share class of the Fund over another Fund or share class, or to recommend one variable annuity, variable life insurance policy, or mutual fund over another. Ask your salesperson or visit your financial intermediary’s website for more information.
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