Principal Financial price target raised to $98 from $85 at Evercore ISI

Evercore ISI raised the firm’s price target on Principal Financial (PFG) to $98 from $85 and keeps an In Line rating on the shares. The firm thinks a “strong case can be made” for a higher re-rating of the life insurance sector as the investor base broadens following the continued entrance of many alternative managers into the sector, the material risk reduction through risk transfer that these new entrants have created and reduced overhangs from divestitures. The sector will likely be a net winner from market conditions post-election while competitive threats to alts-owned insurers “is a manageable risk for most,” the analyst tells investors in a research note.