Principal Financial price target raised to $78 from $75 at Barclays

Barclays analyst Tracy Benguigui raised the firm’s price target on Principal Financial to $78 from $75 and keeps an Equal Weight rating on the shares. The analyst found last quarter’s comments about elevated mortality “to be a bit dubious” as higher seasonality was cited despite a pull forward of the flu season. The Q2 results for insurance companies “may serve as a cleaner quarter to determine if elevated mortality is on the rise,” the analyst tells investors in a research note.