Back to top

Image: Bigstock

Voya Financial (VOYA) Q2 Earnings Beat, Dividend Raised

Read MoreHide Full Article

Voya Financial, Inc.  (VOYA - Free Report) reported second-quarter 2024 adjusted operating earnings of $2.27 per share, which beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 3.6%.

The bottom line, however, decreased 1.7% year over year due to lower net underwriting gains in Health Solutions, partially offset by higher fee-based revenues in Wealth Solutions and Investment Management.

Behind the Headlines

Adjusted operating revenues amounted to $324 million, down 6.6% year over year. The top line missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 0.4%.

Voya Financial, Inc. Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise

Voya Financial, Inc. Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise

Voya Financial, Inc. price-consensus-eps-surprise-chart | Voya Financial, Inc. Quote

Net investment income declined 5% year over year to $518 million. Meanwhile, fee income of $517 million increased 9.1% year over year.

Premiums totaled $790 million, up 16.7% from the year-ago quarter. Total benefits and expenses were $1.8 billion, up 9.3% from the year-ago quarter.

As of Jun 30, 2024, VOYA’s assets under management, assets under administration and advisement totaled $861.3 billion.

Segmental Update

Wealth Solutions reported pre-tax adjusted operating earnings of $214 million, which jumped 23% year over year, driven by fee-based revenue growth aided by both equity market appreciation and stable fee margins, as well as lower administrative expenses. 

Total client assets as of Jun 30, 2024, were $581 billion, up 12% year over year, primarily due to higher equity market levels.

Health Solutions’ pre-tax adjusted operating earnings amounted to $60 million, which plunged 51.6% year over year, primarily due to lower stop loss net underwriting gains in the current period.

Annualized in-force premiums and fees grew 16% to $3.9 billion. The strong increase reflects growth across all product lines due to solid sales and favorable retention.

Investment Management posted pre-tax adjusted operating earnings of $50 million, flat year over year. Higher net revenues due to positive capital markets and strong 2024 business momentum were offset by higher administrative expenses, a portion of which was not recurring.

Net inflows were $4.8 billion, organically up 16% year over year, driven by Institutional US and Insurance channel flows and continued positive flows within Retail. 

Corporate incurred a pre-tax adjusted operating loss, excluding Allianz's noncontrolling interest, of $53 million, flat year over year. 

Financial Update

Voya Financial exited the quarter with cash and cash equivalents of $1.1 billion, which jumped 13.8% year over year. Total investments amounted to $35.2 billion, down 3.7% year over year.

Long-term debt as of Jun 30, 2024 was $395 million, up from $1 million at 2023 end. The financial leverage ratio (excluding accumulated other comprehensive income) deteriorated 20 basis points year over year to 28%.

As of Jun 30, 2024, book value per share (excluding AOCI) was $59.33, which increased 4.5% from 2013 end. 

Voya Financial exited the second quarter with more than $0.2 billion in excess capital.

Capital Deployment

The company returned $0.2 billion of capital in second-quarter 2024, including $174 million in share repurchases and $40 million in common stock dividends.

The board approved a 12.5% hike in its quarterly dividend to 45 cents.

Zacks Rank

Voya Financial currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

Performance of Other Insurers

The Travelers Companies (TRV - Free Report) reported second-quarter 2024 core income of $2.51 per share, which beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 25.5%.  The bottom line skyrocketed from 6 cents earned in the year-ago quarter, driven by solid underlying results, net favorable prior year reserve development and higher net investment income, partially offset by higher catastrophe losses. Travelers’ total revenues increased 12.4% from the year-ago quarter to $11.3 billion, primarily driven by higher premiums. The top-line figure, however, missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 1%.

The Progressive Corporation’s (PGR - Free Report) second-quarter 2024 earnings per share of $2.65 beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.99. The bottom line improved more than five times year over year. Operating revenues of $18.3 billion beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 1.4% and increased 18.9% year over year.

Progressive’s net premiums earned grew 19% to $17.2 billion and beat our estimate of $16.7 billion. Combined ratio improved 850 bps from the prior-year quarter’s level to 91.9.

Selective Insurance Group, Inc. (SIGI - Free Report) reported second-quarter 2024 operating loss of $1.10 per share against the Zacks Consensus Estimate of earnings of $1.56. The company had reported an operating income of 99 cents per share in the prior year quarter. The quarterly results reflected poor underwriting performance, unfavorable prior-year casualty reserve development and escalating costs, offset by higher premiums and net investment income. 

Selective Insurance’s total revenues of $1.2 billion increased 15% from the year-ago quarter’s figure, primarily due to higher premiums earned, net investment income and net premiums written. The top line missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 1.3%.

Published in