Dimensional Fund Advisors LP Purchases 248,795 Shares of Voya Financial, Inc. (NYSE:VOYA)

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its position in shares of Voya Financial, Inc. (NYSE:VOYA) by 13.8% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,055,263 shares of the asset manager’s stock after purchasing an additional 248,795 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP owned 2.09% of Voya Financial worth $146,234,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. SYSTM Wealth Solutions LLC boosted its stake in Voya Financial by 56.2% in the 1st quarter. SYSTM Wealth Solutions LLC now owns 414 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 149 shares during the period. FinTrust Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Voya Financial during the first quarter worth $43,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC boosted its position in shares of Voya Financial by 6,850.0% during the first quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 834 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $62,000 after acquiring an additional 822 shares during the last quarter. Mather Group LLC. purchased a new position in Voya Financial during the first quarter valued at $85,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in Voya Financial by 70.9% in the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,297 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $92,000 after purchasing an additional 538 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.10% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on VOYA shares. Citigroup raised their price objective on Voya Financial from $86.00 to $91.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on Voya Financial from $79.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 11th. Barclays assumed coverage on Voya Financial in a research report on Wednesday, September 4th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $84.00 target price for the company. Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of Voya Financial from $80.00 to $83.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 11th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on shares of Voya Financial from $76.00 to $75.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, August 19th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $83.64.

Voya Financial Stock Down 1.6 %

Shares of NYSE VOYA opened at $76.62 on Friday. Voya Financial, Inc. has a 1 year low of $63.02 and a 1 year high of $78.12. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $70.58 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $71.31. The company has a market cap of $7.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.88, a PEG ratio of 0.56 and a beta of 1.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a current ratio of 0.30 and a quick ratio of 0.30.

Voya Financial (NYSE:VOYA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The asset manager reported $2.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.14 by $0.13. Voya Financial had a return on equity of 16.11% and a net margin of 10.87%. The firm had revenue of $2.03 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.87 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.31 EPS. Voya Financial’s quarterly revenue was up 8.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that Voya Financial, Inc. will post 8.45 earnings per share for the current year.

Voya Financial Increases Dividend

The business 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 $0.45 dividend. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.35%. The ex-dividend date 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 25.57%.

About Voya Financial

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.