Voya Financial, Inc. (NYSE:VOYA) Receives Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Voya Financial, Inc. (NYSE:VOYA) has received an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the ten research firms that are covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and seven have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year price objective among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $83.50.

Several analysts have issued reports on the company. Bank of America boosted their price objective on Voya Financial from $80.00 to $83.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 11th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on Voya Financial from $91.00 to $87.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on Voya Financial from $88.00 to $87.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Morgan Stanley lowered Voya Financial from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and cut their price target for the stock from $79.00 to $76.00 in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Finally, Citigroup raised their target price on Voya Financial from $86.00 to $91.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 23rd.

Voya Financial Stock Performance

VOYA stock opened at $64.77 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $6.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.20, a PEG ratio of 0.46 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $71.38 and a 200 day simple moving average of $71.03. Voya Financial has a fifty-two week low of $63.02 and a fifty-two week high of $76.75. The company has a quick ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 0.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51.

Voya Financial (NYSE:VOYA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The asset manager reported $2.27 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.14 by $0.13. The firm had revenue of $2.03 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.87 billion. Voya Financial had a net margin of 10.87% and a return on equity of 16.11%. Voya Financial’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.31 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Voya Financial will post 8.48 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Voya Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 26th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 27th will be paid a $0.45 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, August 27th. This is a positive change from Voya Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.78%. Voya Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 22.73%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Yvette S. Butler sold 2,165 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $73.78, for a total value of $159,733.70. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. 1.37% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Voya Financial

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Hohimer Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in Voya Financial by 1.7% during the 1st quarter. Hohimer Wealth Management LLC now owns 8,452 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $625,000 after acquiring an additional 140 shares during the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC grew its holdings in Voya Financial by 2.9% during the fourth quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 5,156 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $376,000 after purchasing an additional 147 shares during the period. SYSTM Wealth Solutions LLC grew its holdings in Voya Financial by 56.2% during the first quarter. SYSTM Wealth Solutions LLC now owns 414 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 149 shares during the period. Arjuna Capital grew its holdings in Voya Financial by 0.8% during the second quarter. Arjuna Capital now owns 19,685 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $1,401,000 after purchasing an additional 161 shares during the period. Finally, Panagora Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings in Voya Financial by 1.3% during the fourth quarter. Panagora Asset Management Inc. now owns 13,115 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $957,000 after purchasing an additional 169 shares during the period. 96.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.