Aflac (NYSE:AFL) Price Target Raised to $98.00

Aflac (NYSE:AFL) had its price objective boosted by Morgan Stanley from $91.00 to $98.00 in a report published on Monday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an equal weight rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

Several other brokerages have also recently commented on AFL. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Aflac from $81.00 to $90.00 and gave the company an equal weight rating in a research note on Monday, August 12th. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of Aflac from $84.00 to $109.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 14th. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price objective on shares of Aflac from $84.00 to $83.00 and set a hold rating for the company in a research note on Friday, June 28th. Bank of America increased their target price on shares of Aflac from $105.00 to $108.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. Finally, StockNews.com raised Aflac from a sell rating to a hold rating in a research report on Friday, May 3rd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Aflac presently has an average rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $91.69.

Aflac Stock Up 0.5 %

Aflac stock opened at $105.31 on Monday. Aflac has a twelve month low of $72.78 and a twelve month high of $105.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.08 and a current ratio of 0.10. The firm has a market cap of $59.84 billion, a PE ratio of 11.62, a P/E/G ratio of 2.76 and a beta of 0.95. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $94.35 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $87.41.

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

Aflac Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 2nd. Stockholders 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 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.90%. Aflac’s payout ratio is 22.08%.

Insider Activity at Aflac

In other Aflac news, Director Thomas J. Kenny sold 2,000 shares of the firm’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 sale, the director now directly owns 18,158 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,796,552.52. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.90% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Aflac

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Y.D. More Investments Ltd acquired a new position in Aflac in the second quarter worth about $25,000. Atwood & Palmer Inc. grew its stake in shares of Aflac by 80.0% in the 1st quarter. Atwood & Palmer Inc. now owns 315 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 140 shares during the period. OFI Invest Asset Management acquired a new position in shares of Aflac in the 1st quarter worth approximately $29,000. Criterion Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Aflac during the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. Finally, Dixon Mitchell Investment Counsel Inc. acquired a new stake in Aflac in the 1st quarter valued at $34,000. Institutional investors own 67.44% of the company’s stock.

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.