Voya Financial ‘s recent acquisition of Allianz Global Investors and its portfolio of products positions the company to fare well in an inflationary environment, Piper Sandler says. Analyst John Barnidge upgraded shares of the insurance and investment stock to overweight from neutral, calling the company an inflation “net beneficiary.” Barnidge said Voya’s over-indexing in education, government and health care insulates the company in a recessionary environment or one with wage inflation. “As such, should a fight for talent that has seen increased retirement contribution & benefits enhancements in the workforce turn to reductions, the sectors the company is focused naturally has more buoyancy to employment rolls than others sectors historically,” he wrote. At the same time, the firm sees value in Voya’s recent acquisition of Allianz Global Investors, which offers a slew of revenue protections in the near term. “VOYA’s acquisition of AGI’s U.S. fund offers enhanced distribution with limited FX exposure while offering revenue protection from flow leakage post-close,” Barnidge said. Shares of Voya are down about 8% this year and sit nearly 19% off their 52-week highs. Piper Sandler’s $70 price target implies that shares could rally about 15% from Thursday’s close. — CNBC’s Michael Bloom contributed reporting.
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