Barclays Downgrades Voya Financial (NYSE:VOYA) to Hold

Voya Financial (NYSE:VOYA) was downgraded by stock analysts at Barclays from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note issued on Thursday,Zacks.com reports.

Other equities analysts also recently issued reports about the company. Wells Fargo & Company reissued an “equal weight” rating and set a $76.00 price objective (down from $87.00) on shares of Voya Financial in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price target on shares of Voya Financial from $90.00 to $85.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday. UBS Group upgraded Voya Financial to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 11th. Evercore ISI decreased their price objective on shares of Voya Financial from $94.00 to $89.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, Piper Sandler dropped their price objective on Voya Financial from $91.00 to $84.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Voya Financial has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $82.18.

Voya Financial Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:VOYA opened at $70.82 on Thursday. Voya Financial has a one year low of $63.11 and a one year high of $84.30. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $71.00 and its 200-day simple moving average is $74.08. The firm has a market cap of $6.81 billion, a PE ratio of 11.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.49 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a quick ratio of 0.31 and a current ratio of 0.31.

Voya Financial (NYSE:VOYA) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The asset manager reported $1.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.15 by ($0.65). Voya Financial had a net margin of 8.81% and a return on equity of 15.09%. As a group, equities analysts predict that Voya Financial will post 7.11 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Voya Financial

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Hennessy Advisors Inc. bought a new position in Voya Financial in the fourth quarter worth about $47,155,000. KBC Group NV raised its position in shares of Voya Financial by 260.5% during the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 9,384 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $646,000 after purchasing an additional 6,781 shares during the period. Barclays PLC increased its holdings in Voya Financial by 48.2% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 48,890 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $3,872,000 after acquiring an additional 15,902 shares during the last quarter. Miracle Mile Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Voya Financial in the 4th quarter worth $1,379,000. Finally, Retirement Systems of Alabama grew its holdings in Voya Financial by 8.2% during the 3rd quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama now owns 272,339 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $21,575,000 after purchasing an additional 20,750 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 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.