Morgan Stanley Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Voya Financial (NYSE:VOYA) Stock

Voya Financial (NYSE:VOYA) had its price objective raised by analysts at Morgan Stanley from $88.00 to $89.00 in a note issued to investors on Monday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an “overweight” rating on the asset manager’s stock. Morgan Stanley’s price target points to a potential upside of 25.02% from the stock’s current price.

Several other equities research analysts have also commented on VOYA. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on Voya Financial from $80.00 to $83.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. Bank of America reissued an “underperform” rating and issued a $71.00 price objective (down from $79.00) on shares of Voya Financial in a research note on Friday, March 28th. UBS Group lowered their price objective on Voya Financial from $89.00 to $88.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Voya Financial from $76.00 to $82.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. Finally, Barclays increased their price target on Voya Financial from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, July 7th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Voya Financial has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $83.83.

Voya Financial Trading Down 3.0%

NYSE VOYA opened at $71.19 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.28, a current ratio of 0.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58. Voya Financial has a twelve month low of $52.43 and a twelve month high of $84.30. The company has a market cap of $6.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.68 and a beta of 1.00. The business’s fifty day moving average is $68.73 and its 200 day moving average is $67.37.

Voya Financial (NYSE:VOYA) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 6th. The asset manager reported $2.15 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.59 by $0.56. Voya Financial had a return on equity of 14.05% and a net margin of 7.18%. The company had revenue of $1.97 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.94 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.77 EPS. Voya Financial’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Voya Financial will post 8.39 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Voya Financial

In other news, Director Yvette S. Butler sold 1,700 shares of Voya Financial stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $66.18, for a total value of $112,506.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 355 shares in the company, valued at approximately $23,493.90. The trade was a 82.73% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 1.37% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Voya Financial

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in VOYA. Jones Financial Companies Lllp lifted its stake in Voya Financial by 81.0% during the fourth quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 409 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 183 shares during the last quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC increased its holdings in Voya Financial by 22.3% during the 4th quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 1,545 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $106,000 after purchasing an additional 282 shares during the period. Proficio Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in Voya Financial during the 4th quarter valued at about $3,806,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in Voya Financial during the 4th quarter valued at about $8,018,000. Finally, Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank increased its holdings in Voya Financial by 11.4% during the 4th quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 25,181 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $1,733,000 after purchasing an additional 2,581 shares during the period. 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.