Norges Bank Invests $96.51 Million in Voya Financial, Inc. (NYSE:VOYA)

Norges Bank bought a new stake in Voya Financial, Inc. (NYSE:VOYA) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 1,402,120 shares of the asset manager’s stock, valued at approximately $96,508,000. Norges Bank owned about 1.46% of Voya Financial as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. FMR LLC raised its stake in Voya Financial by 25.9% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 2,884,044 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $228,474,000 after buying an additional 592,523 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its stake in shares of Voya Financial by 52.8% in the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 56,878 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $4,506,000 after buying an additional 19,654 shares during the period. Townsquare Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Voya Financial during the 3rd quarter worth $251,000. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank grew its stake in Voya Financial by 1.8% during the third quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 22,600 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $1,790,000 after buying an additional 405 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Verition Fund Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Voya Financial by 51.6% during the 3rd quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC now owns 67,868 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $5,377,000 after acquiring an additional 23,096 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.10% of the company’s stock.

Voya Financial Stock Up 0.3 %

Voya Financial stock opened at $67.95 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $6.49 billion, a PE ratio of 11.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.48 and a beta of 1.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a quick ratio of 0.31 and a current ratio of 0.30. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $70.38 and its 200 day simple moving average is $74.34. Voya Financial, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $64.10 and a fifty-two week high of $84.30.

Voya Financial (NYSE:VOYA) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The asset manager reported $1.50 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.15 by ($0.65). Voya Financial had a net margin of 8.29% and a return on equity of 14.10%. Research analysts predict that Voya Financial, Inc. will post 8.39 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Voya Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 27th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 25th were issued a $0.45 dividend. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.65%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 25th. Voya Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 29.41%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have issued reports on VOYA. Barclays cut Voya Financial from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their target price on Voya Financial from $90.00 to $85.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Evercore ISI dropped their price target on shares of Voya Financial from $94.00 to $89.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on Voya Financial from $87.00 to $82.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Voya Financial from $76.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Voya Financial has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $82.45.

About Voya Financial

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.