Aflac (NYSE:AFL) PT Raised to $109.00

Aflac (NYSE:AFL) had its price objective increased by UBS Group from $84.00 to $109.00 in a research report sent to investors on Wednesday morning, Benzinga reports. UBS Group currently has a neutral rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently commented on AFL. Bank of America raised their target price on Aflac from $105.00 to $108.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Aflac from $80.00 to $83.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a report on Tuesday, July 2nd. Citigroup raised their target price on Aflac from $84.00 to $93.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Truist Financial raised their target price on Aflac from $82.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a hold rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price objective on Aflac from $84.00 to $83.00 and set a hold rating for the company in a research note on Friday, June 28th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of Hold and an average price target of $90.62.

Aflac Trading Down 0.1 %

Shares of NYSE:AFL traded down $0.15 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $102.22. 148,051 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,215,692. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $92.72 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $86.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 0.10 and a quick ratio of 0.08. The stock has a market cap of $58.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.30, a P/E/G ratio of 2.76 and a beta of 0.95. Aflac has a fifty-two week low of $72.78 and a fifty-two week high of $104.90.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 31st. The financial services provider reported $1.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.60 by $0.23. The firm had revenue of $5.14 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.10 billion. Aflac had a return on equity of 16.22% and a net margin of 28.35%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down .7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.58 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Aflac will post 6.48 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Aflac Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 2nd. Investors of record on Wednesday, August 21st will be paid a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, August 21st. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.96%. Aflac’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 22.08%.

Insider Activity at Aflac

In related news, Director Thomas J. Kenny sold 2,000 shares of Aflac stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $98.94, for a total value of $197,880.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 18,158 shares in the company, valued at $1,796,552.52. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other Aflac news, Director Charles D. Lake II sold 22,378 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $87.47, for a total transaction of $1,957,403.66. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 61,522 shares in the company, valued at $5,381,329.34. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Thomas J. Kenny sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $98.94, for a total value of $197,880.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 18,158 shares in the company, valued at $1,796,552.52. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.90% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Aflac

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in AFL. Y.D. More Investments Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Aflac in the second quarter valued at $25,000. Atwood & Palmer Inc. lifted its position in shares of Aflac by 80.0% in the first quarter. Atwood & Palmer Inc. now owns 315 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 140 shares in the last quarter. OFI Invest Asset Management purchased a new stake in shares of Aflac in the first quarter valued at $29,000. Criterion Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Aflac in the fourth quarter valued at $33,000. Finally, Dixon Mitchell Investment Counsel Inc. acquired a new position in Aflac in the first quarter valued at $34,000. 67.44% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Aflac

Aflac Incorporated, through its subsidiaries, provides supplemental health and life insurance products. The company operates through Aflac Japan and Aflac U.S. segments. The Aflac Japan segment offers cancer, medical, nursing care, work leave, GIFT, and whole and term life insurance products, as well as WAYS and child endowment plans under saving type insurance products in Japan.