Bank of Montreal Can Reduces Stock Position in Voya Financial, Inc. (NYSE:VOYA)

Bank of Montreal Can trimmed its holdings in Voya Financial, Inc. (NYSE:VOYA) by 28.1% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 18,402 shares of the asset manager’s stock after selling 7,204 shares during the quarter. Bank of Montreal Can’s holdings in Voya Financial were worth $1,267,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Jones Financial Companies Lllp grew its position in shares of Voya Financial by 81.0% during the 4th quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 409 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 183 shares in the last quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in Voya Financial by 207.0% during the fourth quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 485 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 327 shares during the period. R Squared Ltd purchased a new position in Voya Financial during the fourth quarter worth about $41,000. Venturi Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Voya Financial by 45.0% during the fourth quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 648 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $45,000 after buying an additional 201 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Brooklyn Investment Group increased its stake in Voya Financial by 17.0% in the 4th quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 1,166 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $80,000 after acquiring an additional 169 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.10% of the company’s stock.

Voya Financial Trading Up 0.5 %

NYSE VOYA opened at $56.74 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $5.46 billion, a PE ratio of 9.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.48 and a beta of 0.93. Voya Financial, Inc. has a 1-year low of $52.43 and a 1-year high of $84.30. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $66.49 and a 200-day moving average of $72.38. The company has a current ratio of 0.30, a quick ratio of 0.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59.

Voya Financial (NYSE:VOYA) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The asset manager reported $1.50 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.15 by ($0.65). Voya Financial had a net margin of 8.29% and a return on equity of 14.10%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Voya Financial, Inc. will post 8.39 EPS for the current year.

Voya Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 27th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 25th were given a $0.45 dividend. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.17%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 25th. Voya Financial’s payout ratio is 29.41%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on VOYA. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on Voya Financial from $81.00 to $80.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Barclays cut their price target on shares of Voya Financial from $75.00 to $66.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of Voya Financial from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $76.00 to $87.00 in a research report on Friday, February 28th. UBS Group reduced their target price on Voya Financial from $94.00 to $89.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. Finally, Bank of America restated an “underperform” rating and set a $71.00 price target (down previously from $79.00) on shares of Voya Financial in a research report on Friday, March 28th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Voya Financial presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $80.92.

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.