Voya Financial (NYSE:VOYA) Downgraded to Equal Weight at Morgan Stanley

Morgan Stanley downgraded shares of Voya Financial (NYSE:VOYA) from an overweight rating to an equal weight rating in a research note issued to investors on Thursday, Marketbeat.com reports. The brokerage currently has $76.00 target price on the asset manager’s stock, down from their previous target price of $79.00.

A number of other research firms have also issued reports on VOYA. Citigroup increased their price target on Voya Financial from $86.00 to $91.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on Voya Financial from $78.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a hold rating in a research report on Thursday, July 18th. Piper Sandler increased their price target on Voya Financial from $78.00 to $86.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research report on Friday, April 5th. Bank of America increased their price target on Voya Financial from $80.00 to $83.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research report on Thursday, July 11th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Voya Financial from $91.00 to $92.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a report on Friday, May 10th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $84.00.

Voya Financial Trading Down 4.2 %

VOYA traded down $2.98 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $67.41. 83,951 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 829,407. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $72.72 and its two-hundred day moving average is $71.32. Voya Financial has a 1-year low of $63.02 and a 1-year high of $76.75. The company has a current ratio of 0.30, a quick ratio of 0.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51. The company has a market cap of $6.79 billion, a PE ratio of 10.00, a PEG ratio of 0.53 and a beta of 1.05.

Voya Financial (NYSE:VOYA) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The asset manager reported $2.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.14 by $0.13. Voya Financial had a return on equity of 16.28% and a net margin of 10.87%. The firm had revenue of $2.03 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.87 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.31 EPS. Voya Financial’s revenue was up 8.7% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts forecast that Voya Financial will post 8.42 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Voya Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 26th. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 27th will be paid a dividend of $0.45 per share. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.67%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 27th. This is an increase from Voya Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. Voya Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 22.73%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Voya Financial news, Director Yvette S. Butler sold 2,165 shares of Voya Financial stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $73.78, for a total value of $159,733.70. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 1.37% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of VOYA. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its stake in shares of Voya Financial by 1,020.2% in the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 2,368,185 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $175,057,000 after purchasing an additional 2,156,773 shares during the last quarter. Boston Partners lifted its holdings in shares of Voya Financial by 83.8% in the 1st quarter. Boston Partners now owns 2,525,604 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $186,310,000 after buying an additional 1,151,822 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Voya Financial in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $80,749,000. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Voya Financial by 6.2% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 11,067,291 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $818,094,000 after buying an additional 644,216 shares during the period. Finally, Gillson Capital LP acquired a new stake in shares of Voya Financial in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $11,142,000. 96.10% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Voya Financial Company Profile

Voya Financial, Inc engages in the provision of workplace benefits and savings products in the United States and internationally. The company operates through three segments: Wealth Solutions, Health Solutions, and Investment Management. The Wealth Solutions segment offers full-service retirement products; recordkeeping services; stable value and fixed general account investment products; non-qualified plan administration services; and tools, guidance, and services to promote the financial well-being and retirement security of employees.