Aflac (NYSE:AFL) Price Target Raised to $114.00 at UBS Group

Aflac (NYSE:AFL) had its target price hoisted by UBS Group from $109.00 to $114.00 in a research report report published on Wednesday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have a neutral rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

A number of other analysts have also recently commented on AFL. Piper Sandler upped their price objective on shares of Aflac from $118.00 to $124.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday. BMO Capital Markets started coverage on Aflac in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $111.00 price target for the company. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on Aflac from $104.00 to $102.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. StockNews.com raised Aflac from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Aflac from $98.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $104.29.

Aflac Stock Down 0.1 %

Shares of Aflac stock opened at $112.32 on Wednesday. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $106.87 and a 200 day simple moving average of $107.74. The stock has a market cap of $61.31 billion, a PE ratio of 11.70, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.24 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a quick ratio of 0.08, a current ratio of 0.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. Aflac has a 12 month low of $79.31 and a 12 month high of $115.50.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The financial services provider reported $1.56 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.63 by ($0.07). Aflac had a net margin of 28.76% and a return on equity of 16.20%. Research analysts predict that Aflac will post 6.88 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Joseph L. Moskowitz sold 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 directly owns 25,393 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,733,048.59. This trade represents a 3.79 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Charles D. Lake II sold 29,802 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 directly owns 49,962 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,360,422.98. This trade represents a 37.36 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.90% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. FMR LLC increased its holdings in shares of Aflac by 4.0% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,202,104 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $134,395,000 after purchasing an additional 45,745 shares during the last quarter. Centiva Capital LP grew its stake in Aflac by 93.2% in the 3rd quarter. Centiva Capital LP now owns 15,599 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,744,000 after buying an additional 7,524 shares during the last quarter. Hilltop Holdings Inc. raised its holdings in Aflac by 27.8% in the 3rd quarter. Hilltop Holdings Inc. now owns 7,567 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $846,000 after acquiring an additional 1,647 shares during the period. HighTower Advisors LLC lifted its position in Aflac by 4.5% during the third quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 468,053 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $52,327,000 after acquiring an additional 20,032 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Investment Management Corp of Ontario boosted its holdings in shares of Aflac by 47.7% during the third quarter. Investment Management Corp of Ontario now owns 17,961 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,008,000 after acquiring an additional 5,800 shares during the period. 67.44% of the stock is currently owned by 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.