Voya Financial (NYSE:VOYA) Hits New 1-Year High – Still a Buy?

Shares of Voya Financial, Inc. (NYSE:VOYA) hit a new 52-week high during trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $96.34 and last traded at $96.28, with a volume of 871721 shares. The stock had previously closed at $94.37.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have issued reports on VOYA shares. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Voya Financial from $98.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Voya Financial from $80.00 to $89.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 12th. Raymond James Financial raised shares of Voya Financial from a “market perform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and set a $117.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Monday, June 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of Voya Financial from $89.00 to $88.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, May 26th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price target on shares of Voya Financial from $91.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 2nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Voya Financial presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $94.27.

Voya Financial Stock Down 0.3%

The company has a market capitalization of $8.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.87 and a beta of 0.91. The company has a 50-day moving average of $86.32 and a two-hundred day moving average of $77.57. The company has a quick ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 0.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48.

Voya Financial (NYSE:VOYA) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 5th. The asset manager reported $2.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.02 by $0.24. The business had revenue of $1.93 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.98 billion. Voya Financial had a return on equity of 13.84% and a net margin of 8.24%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 3.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.00 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that Voya Financial, Inc. will post 9.64 EPS for the current year.

Voya Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 26th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 26th were given a $0.47 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, May 26th. This represents a $1.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.0%. Voya Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 28.40%.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Trevor Ogle sold 3,994 shares of Voya Financial stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $90.00, for a total transaction of $359,460.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 2,887 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $259,830. This trade represents a 58.04% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 1.57% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Voya Financial

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Verdad Advisers LP purchased a new position in shares of Voya Financial during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $148,980,000. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Voya Financial in the 4th quarter worth approximately $83,106,000. Millennium Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Voya Financial by 135.7% in the 3rd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 1,084,747 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $81,139,000 after purchasing an additional 624,436 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC grew its stake in shares of Voya Financial by 63.0% in the 3rd quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 1,431,835 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $107,101,000 after buying an additional 553,675 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP grew its stake in shares of Voya Financial by 11.6% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 4,262,031 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $318,800,000 after buying an additional 444,059 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.10% of the company’s stock.

Voya Financial Company Profile

Voya Financial, Inc (NYSE: VOYA) is a financial services company headquartered in New York City, focused on helping Americans plan, invest and protect their savings. The company traces its roots to the U.S. operations of ING Group, which were spun off in 2013 and rebranded as Voya Financial in 2014. Voya’s operations are built around a customer-centric approach, drawing on decades of experience in retirement planning and risk management to serve both individual and institutional clients.

Voya’s core business activities span three key segments: Retirement, Investment Management and Employee Benefits.