AQR Capital Management LLC Raises Holdings in Voya Financial, Inc. (NYSE:VOYA)

AQR Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Voya Financial, Inc. (NYSE:VOYA) by 29.6% during the second quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 651,803 shares of the asset manager’s stock after buying an additional 148,810 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Voya Financial were worth $46,376,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its position in Voya Financial by 1,020.2% in the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 2,368,185 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $175,057,000 after purchasing an additional 2,156,773 shares during the period. Boston Partners grew its holdings in shares of Voya Financial by 83.8% in the first quarter. Boston Partners now owns 2,525,604 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $186,310,000 after acquiring an additional 1,151,822 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in Voya Financial by 6.2% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 11,067,291 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $818,094,000 after acquiring an additional 644,216 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in Voya Financial by 13.8% in the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,055,263 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $146,234,000 after acquiring an additional 248,795 shares during the period. Finally, Renaissance Technologies LLC purchased a new position in Voya Financial in the second quarter worth about $13,013,000. 96.10% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Voya Financial Stock Down 0.2 %

NYSE VOYA opened at $78.49 on Friday. Voya Financial, Inc. has a one year low of $63.02 and a one year high of $79.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a quick ratio of 0.30 and a current ratio of 0.30. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $71.15 and a 200-day moving average price of $71.65. The company has a market capitalization of $7.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.15, a P/E/G ratio of 0.57 and a beta of 1.03.

Voya Financial (NYSE:VOYA) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 30th. The asset manager reported $2.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.14 by $0.13. The business had revenue of $2.03 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.87 billion. Voya Financial had a return on equity of 16.11% and a net margin of 10.87%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 8.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.31 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that Voya Financial, Inc. will post 8.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Voya Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 26th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 27th were paid a dividend of $0.45 per share. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.29%. 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. Voya Financial’s payout ratio is presently 25.57%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on VOYA shares. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on shares of Voya Financial from $78.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 18th. Barclays started coverage on shares of Voya Financial in a research note on Wednesday, September 4th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $84.00 price target on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on Voya Financial from $88.00 to $87.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on Voya Financial from $76.00 to $75.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, August 19th. Finally, Piper Sandler restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $84.00 price target on shares of Voya Financial in a research report on Monday, September 23rd. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $83.45.

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.