Analysts Set Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) Price Target at $83.69

Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) has been given an average rating of “Hold” by the thirteen brokerages that are covering the company, Marketbeat reports. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $85.15.

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on Aflac from $83.00 to $87.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Truist Financial boosted their target price on Aflac from $80.00 to $82.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, May 3rd. StockNews.com raised Aflac from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, May 3rd. Piper Sandler boosted their target price on Aflac from $95.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, June 28th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted 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.

Insider Buying and Selling at Aflac

In other Aflac news, Director Charles D. Lake II sold 22,378 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $87.47, for a total value of $1,957,403.66. Following the sale, the director now owns 61,522 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,381,329.34. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, Director Joseph L. Moskowitz sold 600 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $84.84, for a total value of $50,904.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 27,550 shares in the company, valued at $2,337,342. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Charles D. Lake II sold 22,378 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $87.47, for a total value of $1,957,403.66. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 61,522 shares in the company, valued at $5,381,329.34. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.90% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Aflac

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Fortitude Family Office LLC acquired a new stake in Aflac in the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Atwood & Palmer Inc. boosted its stake in Aflac by 80.0% in the 1st quarter. Atwood & Palmer Inc. now owns 315 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 140 shares during the last quarter. OFI Invest Asset Management acquired a new stake in Aflac in the 1st quarter worth about $29,000. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC acquired a new stake in Aflac in the 4th quarter worth about $32,000. Finally, Criterion Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Aflac in the 4th quarter worth about $33,000. 67.44% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Aflac Price Performance

AFL stock opened at $92.68 on Wednesday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $88.22 and a 200 day moving average price of $84.38. The stock has a market cap of $52.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.23, a PEG ratio of 2.23 and a beta of 0.95. Aflac has a fifty-two week low of $69.00 and a fifty-two week high of $93.08. The company has a quick ratio of 0.08, a current ratio of 0.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 6th. The financial services provider reported $1.66 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.58 by $0.08. Aflac had a return on equity of 16.88% and a net margin of 27.67%. The company had revenue of $5.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.09 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.55 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.3% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that Aflac will post 6.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Aflac Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 3rd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 22nd were issued a $0.50 dividend. This is a positive change from Aflac’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.42. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, May 21st. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.16%. Aflac’s dividend payout ratio is 22.08%.

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.