Voya Financial, Inc. (NYSE:VOYA) Short Interest Update

Voya Financial, Inc. (NYSE:VOYA) saw a significant drop in short interest during the month of September. As of September 30th, there was short interest totalling 2,110,000 shares, a drop of 28.2% from the September 15th total of 2,940,000 shares. Approximately 2.2% of the company’s stock are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 784,300 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.7 days.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

VOYA has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on Voya Financial from $76.00 to $75.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, August 19th. Barclays raised their price objective on Voya Financial from $84.00 to $85.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday. Citigroup lifted their price target on Voya Financial from $86.00 to $91.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. downgraded Voya Financial from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $87.00 price objective on the stock. in a research report on Thursday, October 3rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Voya Financial from $87.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Voya Financial presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $85.27.

Voya Financial Stock Up 0.9 %

VOYA traded up $0.71 on Friday, hitting $79.84. 655,988 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 828,564. Voya Financial has a twelve month low of $63.02 and a twelve month high of $80.36. The company has a market cap of $7.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.59 and a beta of 1.03. 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 firm has a 50-day moving average price of $72.56 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $72.20.

Voya Financial (NYSE:VOYA) last released its quarterly earnings data 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. The business had revenue of $2.03 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.87 billion. Voya Financial had a return on equity of 16.11% and a net margin of 10.87%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 8.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.31 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Voya Financial will post 8.31 earnings per share for the current year.

Voya Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 26th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 27th were issued a $0.45 dividend. This is an increase from Voya Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.25%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, August 27th. Voya Financial’s payout ratio is presently 23.72%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Voya Financial

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Hohimer Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 140 shares in the last quarter. Arjuna Capital lifted its position in shares of Voya Financial by 0.8% during the second quarter. Arjuna Capital now owns 19,685 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $1,401,000 after purchasing an additional 161 shares during the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. lifted its stake in Voya Financial by 118.9% during the third quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 440 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 239 shares during the last quarter. Blair William & Co. IL grew its position in shares of Voya Financial by 5.3% during the 1st quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 5,380 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $398,000 after buying an additional 272 shares during the last quarter. Finally, State of Michigan Retirement System raised its position in shares of Voya Financial by 1.2% during the 1st quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 25,316 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $1,871,000 after purchasing an additional 300 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.10% of the company’s stock.

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.