Keefe, Bruyette & Woods Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Aflac (NYSE:AFL) Stock

Aflac (NYSE:AFL) had its target price increased by Keefe, Bruyette & Woods from $104.00 to $106.00 in a report published on Wednesday morning,Benzinga reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods currently has a market perform rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

Several other analysts have also weighed in on AFL. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Aflac from $94.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Piper Sandler lifted their price objective on Aflac from $118.00 to $124.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Barclays increased their target price on Aflac from $95.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. StockNews.com lowered Aflac from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Monday, May 5th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Aflac from $102.00 to $103.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $104.21.

Aflac Trading Down 0.4 %

Shares of AFL opened at $105.91 on Wednesday. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $107.21 and a 200-day simple moving average of $106.67. The company has a current ratio of 0.10, a quick ratio of 0.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. The stock has a market cap of $57.81 billion, a PE ratio of 11.03, a PEG ratio of 3.24 and a beta of 0.84. Aflac has a 1 year low of $85.43 and a 1 year high of $115.50.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The financial services provider reported $1.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.67 by ($0.01). Aflac had a net margin of 28.76% and a return on equity of 16.20%. The company had revenue of $3.40 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.53 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.66 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 37.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Aflac will post 6.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Aflac Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 2nd. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 21st will be paid a dividend of $0.58 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 21st. This represents a $2.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.19%. Aflac’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.25%.

Insider Activity at Aflac

In related news, Director Joseph L. Moskowitz sold 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $107.63, for a total value of $107,630.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 25,393 shares in the company, valued at $2,733,048.59. This represents a 3.79 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Charles D. Lake II sold 29,802 shares of Aflac stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $107.29, for a total value of $3,197,456.58. Following the transaction, the director now owns 49,962 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,360,422.98. This represents a 37.36 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.90% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Aflac

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of AFL. Whipplewood Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Aflac during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. BankPlus Trust Department bought a new stake in Aflac in the 4th quarter valued at $34,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in Aflac by 121.9% in the 1st quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 304 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 167 shares during the period. Curio Wealth LLC bought a new position in Aflac during the 4th quarter worth about $36,000. Finally, Garde Capital Inc. bought a new position in Aflac during the 1st quarter worth about $36,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 67.44% of the company’s stock.

Aflac Company Profile

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.