Voya Wins Regulatory Nod To Divest Individual Life Business; Street Is Bullish

Voya Financial announced that it has received the regulatory approval to divest its Individual Life and non-retirement legacy annuities business to insurance company, Resolution Life Group Holdings. Voya expects the deal to close on Jan. 4, 2021.

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Voya’s (VOYA) CEO Rodney O. Martin, Jr. said, “Thanks to the commitment of employees at both companies, we have already completed the operational and financial requirements needed to close the transaction and ensure a smooth transition for our customers.”

Voya also announced the resumption of its share repurchase program. The company entered into an accelerated share repurchase (ASR) agreement with a third-party financial institution and agreed to repurchase shares worth $150 million. The company said, “The initial delivery of shares under the ASR would take place in the fourth quarter of 2020, with final settlement during the first quarter of 2021.” (See VOYA stock analysis on TipRanks).

Earlier on Dec. 1, Credit Suisse analyst Andrew Kligerman raised the stock’s price target to $78 (35.9% upside potential) from $66 and maintained a Buy rating. The analyst remains optimistic about Voya Financial’s capital-light businesses. Kligerman added that the company could use $1.5 billion of incremental capital from the divestiture to repurchase shares and debt retirement.

Overall, the Street has a bullish outlook on the stock. The Strong Buy analyst consensus is based on 8 Buys and 1 Hold. The average price target stands at $66.22 and implies upside potential of about 15.4% to current levels. Shares have declined 5.9% year-to-date.