Voya Financial (NYSE:VOYA) Upgraded at UBS Group

UBS Group upgraded shares of Voya Financial (NYSE:VOYA) to a strong-buy rating in a report published on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

VOYA has been the subject of several other reports. Bank of America increased their price objective on Voya Financial from $84.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. downgraded Voya Financial from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $87.00 price target for the company. in a research note on Thursday, October 3rd. Barclays lifted their price target on Voya Financial from $84.00 to $85.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. Evercore ISI increased their price objective on Voya Financial from $79.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 11th. Finally, Raymond James cut shares of Voya Financial from a “strong-buy” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, September 13th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Voya Financial presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $86.00.

Voya Financial Trading Down 1.5 %

NYSE:VOYA opened at $82.11 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $7.90 billion, a PE ratio of 13.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.59 and a beta of 1.03. Voya Financial has a fifty-two week low of $63.11 and a fifty-two week high of $84.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 0.31 and a quick ratio of 0.31. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $78.88 and its two-hundred day moving average is $74.00.

Voya Financial (NYSE:VOYA) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 4th. The asset manager reported $2.12 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.05 by $0.07. Voya Financial had a net margin of 8.81% and a return on equity of 15.09%. The firm had revenue of $1.96 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.86 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.07 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 7.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Voya Financial will post 8.21 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Voya Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 26th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 26th will be issued a dividend of $0.45 per share. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.19%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 26th. Voya Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 28.66%.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Tony D. Oh sold 715 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $81.95, for a total transaction of $58,594.25. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 1.37% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Voya Financial

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its position in 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 worth $175,057,000 after purchasing an additional 2,156,773 shares during the last quarter. Boston Partners grew its position in Voya Financial by 83.8% during the first quarter. Boston Partners now owns 2,525,604 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $186,310,000 after buying an additional 1,151,822 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in Voya Financial by 6.2% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 11,067,291 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $818,094,000 after acquiring an additional 644,216 shares during the period. FMR LLC raised its holdings in Voya Financial by 25.9% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 2,884,044 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $228,474,000 after acquiring an additional 592,523 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in shares of Voya Financial by 13.8% in the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,055,263 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $146,234,000 after acquiring an additional 248,795 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.