A month has gone by since the last earnings report for Voya Financial (VOYA Quick QuoteVOYA - Free Report) . Shares have lost about 0.5% in that time frame, underperforming the S&P 500.

Will the recent negative trend continue leading up to its next earnings release, or is Voya due for a breakout? Well, first let's take a quick look at its most recent earnings report in order to get a better handle on the recent drivers for Voya Financial, Inc. before we dive into how investors and analysts have reacted as of late.

Voya Financial Q3 Earnings Surpass Estimates on Higher Investment Income 

Voya Financial, Inc. reported third-quarter 2025 adjusted operating earnings of $2.45 per share, which beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate by about 10.3%. The bottom line increased 28.9% year over year.

Behind the Headlines

Adjusted operating revenues amounted to $2.1 billion, which increased 9% year over year. The increase was driven by higher fee income, net investment income, and income related to consolidated investment entities. Net investment income increased 15.2% year over year to $583 million. Meanwhile, fee income of $616 million increased 14% year over year. Premiums totaled $719 million, down 9.6% from the year-ago quarter.

Total benefits and expenses were $1.8 billion, down 1% from the year-ago quarter. As of Sept. 30, 2025, VOYA’s assets under management, assets under administration and advisement totaled $1.1 trillion.

Segmental Update

Retirement recorded pre-tax adjusted operating earnings of $261 million, which rose 23.6% year over year. The increase was primarily due to the acquired business from OneAmerica and higher alternative investment income.
Adjusted operating margin for the trailing 12 months ended Sept. 30, 2025, was 39.8%, which improved 190 basis points year over year. The improvement reflects net revenue growth and disciplined expense management.

Investment Management posted pre-tax adjusted operating earnings, excluding noncontrolling interest, of $62 million, which increased 12.7% year over year. The increase was driven by higher net revenues and margin expansion. Net inflows were $33.9 billion (excluding divested businesses) during the three months ended Sep. 30, 2025. The growth reflects continued momentum across the institutional and retail channels, including significant wins in insurance and international markets. 

Employee Benefits reported pre-tax adjusted operating earnings of $47 million, which doubled year over year. The increase in earnings was driven by improved underwriting margins in Stop Loss, partly offset by increased reserving in Voluntary and a smaller overall in-force book. Annualized in-force premiums and fees declined 5% year over year to $3.7 billion. The decline reflects prioritization of margin over growth through pricing discipline and enhanced risk selection within the Stop Loss business. 

Corporate incurred pre-tax adjusted operating losses, excluding noncontrolling interest of $80 million, wider than $59 million loss incurred in the year-ago quarter. The increase in losses was primarily driven by higher accruals for performance-based compensation, reflecting strong year-to-date results.

Financial Update

Voya Financial exited the quarter with cash and cash equivalents of $1.2 billion, which declined 20.5% year over year. Total investments amounted to $38.2 billion, up 5.8% year over year. Long-term debt at quarter-end was $1.5 billion, down 27.8% from 2024-end. The financial leverage ratio, excluding AOCI, improved 390 basis points year over year to 26.7%. As of Sept 30, 2023, book value per share (excluding AOCI) was $64.18, which increased 5.2% year over year. As of Sept. 30, 2025, Voya Financial had approximately $200 million of excess capital.

Capital Deployment

Voya Financial returned $80 million and $43 million of excess capital to shareholders through share repurchases and common stock dividends, respectively. Beginning in the fourth quarter of 2025, the board of directors raised the dividend by 4% to 47 cents per share. 

How Have Estimates Been Moving Since Then?

Since the earnings release, investors have witnessed a downward trend in estimates revision.

The consensus estimate has shifted -6.06% due to these changes.

VGM Scores

Currently, Voya has a subpar Growth Score of D, a score with the same score on the momentum front. However, the stock was allocated a grade of A on the value side, putting it in the top quintile for value investors.

Overall, the stock has an aggregate VGM Score of C. If you aren't focused on one strategy, this score is the one you should be interested in.

Outlook

Estimates have been broadly trending downward for the stock, and the magnitude of these revisions indicates a downward shift. Interestingly, Voya has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). We expect an in-line return from the stock in the next few months.

Performance of an Industry Player

Voya belongs to the Zacks Insurance - Life Insurance industry. Another stock from the same industry, Reinsurance Group (RGA Quick QuoteRGA - Free Report) , has gained 1% over the past month. More than a month has passed since the company reported results for the quarter ended September 2025.

Reinsurance Group reported revenues of $6.19 billion in the last reported quarter, representing a year-over-year change of +8.1%. EPS of $6.37 for the same period compares with $6.13 a year ago.

For the current quarter, Reinsurance Group is expected to post earnings of $5.85 per share, indicating a change of +17.2% from the year-ago quarter. The Zacks Consensus Estimate has changed +1.3% over the last 30 days.

Reinsurance Group has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) based on the overall direction and magnitude of estimate revisions. Additionally, the stock has a VGM Score of C.