Voya Financial (NYSE:VOYA) Downgraded by JPMorgan Chase & Co. to "Neutral"

JPMorgan Chase & Co. downgraded shares of Voya Financial (NYSE:VOYA - Free Report) from an overweight rating to a neutral rating in a report issued on Thursday morning, Marketbeat reports. The brokerage currently has $87.00 target price on the asset manager's stock.

A number of other research analysts have also recently issued reports on the stock. Piper Sandler raised their price target on shares of Voya Financial from $84.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a report on Wednesday. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an outperform rating and issued a $83.00 price objective on shares of Voya Financial in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on shares of Voya Financial from $76.00 to $75.00 and set an equal weight rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, August 19th. Raymond James lowered shares of Voya Financial from a strong-buy rating to a market perform rating in a research report on Friday, September 13th. Finally, Bank of America raised their price target on shares of Voya Financial from $80.00 to $83.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research report on Thursday, July 11th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $83.82.

Voya Financial Stock Down 1.4 %

Shares of VOYA traded down $1.09 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $78.35. The company's stock had a trading volume of 694,498 shares, compared to its average volume of 826,657. The company's 50-day moving average is $71.57 and its 200-day moving average is $71.83. Voya Financial has a 52-week low of $63.02 and a 52-week high of $79.82. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.15, a PEG ratio of 0.58 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.

Voya Financial (NYSE:VOYA - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The asset manager reported $2.27 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.14 by $0.13. The company had revenue of $2.03 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.87 billion. Voya Financial had a net margin of 10.87% and a return on equity of 16.11%. Voya Financial's revenue for the quarter was up 8.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.31 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Voya Financial will post 8.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Voya Financial Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 26th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 27th were given a $0.45 dividend. This is a positive change from Voya Financial's previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, August 27th. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.30%. Voya Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 25.57%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Voya Financial

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of VOYA. SG Americas Securities LLC raised its stake in Voya Financial by 379.8% during the third quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 13,242 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $1,049,000 after purchasing an additional 10,482 shares during the period. Cascade Investment Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in Voya Financial during the third quarter worth about $1,234,000. Davis Capital Management raised its stake in Voya Financial by 5.5% during the third quarter. Davis Capital Management now owns 19,880 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $1,575,000 after purchasing an additional 1,041 shares during the period. Sanctuary Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Voya Financial during the second quarter worth about $319,000. Finally, Quarry LP purchased a new position in Voya Financial during the second quarter worth about $61,000. 96.10% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.