Bessemer Group Inc. Buys 23,032 Shares of Voya Financial, Inc. $VOYA

Key Points

• Bessemer Group Inc. increased its stake in Voya Financial by 37.6% in the first quarter, buying an additional 23,032 shares and bringing its total holding to 84,340 shares worth about $5.76 million.
• Wall Street sentiment on Voya Financial remains constructive, with a Moderate Buy consensus and an average target price of $97.69. Several firms recently adjusted targets, including Barclays raising its price objective to $105.
• Voya Financial reported strong quarterly results, posting $2.26 EPS versus estimates of $2.02 and raising its quarterly dividend to $0.47 per share, for an annualized yield of about 1.9%.

Bessemer Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Voya Financial, Inc. (NYSE:VOYA - Free Report) by 37.6% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 84,340 shares of the asset manager's stock after purchasing an additional 23,032 shares during the period. Bessemer Group Inc. owned 0.09% of Voya Financial worth $5,764,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Impax Asset Management Group plc boosted its position in shares of Voya Financial by 11.4% during the 4th quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc now owns 203,101 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $15,129,000 after acquiring an additional 20,722 shares in the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp increased its stake in Voya Financial by 4,892.7% in the first quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 63,058 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $4,308,000 after acquiring an additional 61,795 shares during the period. Ruffer LLP acquired a new position in Voya Financial in the fourth quarter worth about $3,153,000. Algebris UK Ltd. raised its position in Voya Financial by 17.6% in the fourth quarter. Algebris UK Ltd. now owns 660,743 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $49,242,000 after purchasing an additional 99,122 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Pzena Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in Voya Financial by 1.3% during the first quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC now owns 3,673,118 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $250,947,000 after purchasing an additional 46,906 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.10% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have weighed in on VOYA. Atlantic Securities set a $79.00 price objective on Voya Financial in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. Barclays raised their target price on Voya Financial from $98.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th. Weiss Ratings raised Voya Financial from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a research note on Friday, June 5th. Bank of America lowered their price target on Voya Financial from $72.00 to $70.00 and set an "underperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 14th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on Voya Financial from $80.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, July 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $97.69.

Voya Financial Price Performance

Shares of Voya Financial stock opened at $98.67 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.90, a P/E/G ratio of 0.91 and a beta of 0.91. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $89.10 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $78.88. The company has a current ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48. Voya Financial, Inc. has a 1-year low of $64.50 and a 1-year high of $103.85.

Voya Financial (NYSE:VOYA - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The asset manager reported $2.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.02 by $0.24. The company had revenue of $1.93 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.98 billion. Voya Financial had a net margin of 8.24% and a return on equity of 13.84%. Voya Financial's quarterly revenue was up 3.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.00 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Voya Financial, Inc. will post 9.4 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Voya Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 26th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 26th were given a $0.47 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, May 26th. This represents a $1.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.9%. Voya Financial's payout ratio is presently 28.40%.

Insider Transactions at Voya Financial

In other Voya Financial news, insider Trevor Ogle sold 3,994 shares of Voya Financial stock in a transaction on Monday, June 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $90.00, for a total value of $359,460.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 2,887 shares in the company, valued at approximately $259,830. The trade was a 58.04% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders own 1.57% of the company's stock.

About Voya Financial

Voya Financial, Inc NYSE: VOYA is a financial services company headquartered in New York City, focused on helping Americans plan, invest and protect their savings. The company traces its roots to the U.S. operations of ING Group, which were spun off in 2013 and rebranded as Voya Financial in 2014. Voya's operations are built around a customer-centric approach, drawing on decades of experience in retirement planning and risk management to serve both individual and institutional clients.

Voya's core business activities span three key segments: Retirement, Investment Management and Employee Benefits.

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