Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) Receives $109.15 Average PT from Brokerages

Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL - Get Free Report) has received an average recommendation of "Hold" from the thirteen ratings firms that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, eight have assigned a hold recommendation and three have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year price target among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $109.1538.

A number of research firms recently issued reports on AFL. Barclays set a $98.00 target price on shares of Aflac and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a report on Monday, July 7th. Raymond James Financial decreased their target price on Aflac from $115.00 to $110.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 29th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Aflac from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, August 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Aflac from $96.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on Aflac from $108.00 to $113.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, August 18th.

Aflac Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE AFL traded up $1.16 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $108.39. 968,310 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,206,723. The company has a quick ratio of 0.11, a current ratio of 0.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $103.92 and a 200-day simple moving average of $105.14. Aflac has a 1-year low of $96.95 and a 1-year high of $115.50. The firm has a market cap of $57.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.97 and a beta of 0.85.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The financial services provider reported $1.78 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.71 by $0.07. Aflac had a net margin of 15.32% and a return on equity of 15.08%. The business had revenue of $4.16 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.30 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.83 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was down 19.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Aflac will post 6.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Aflac Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 2nd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 20th were paid a $0.58 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, August 20th. This represents a $2.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.1%. Aflac's dividend payout ratio is 52.61%.

Aflac declared that its board has approved a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, August 12th that allows the company to buyback 100,000,000 shares. This buyback authorization allows the financial services provider to repurchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally an indication that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Joseph L. Moskowitz sold 1,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $102.57, for a total transaction of $102,570.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 25,105 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,575,019.85. This represents a 3.83% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.90% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Mid American Wealth Advisory Group Inc. purchased a new stake in Aflac in the 2nd quarter worth about $26,000. Chilton Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Aflac in the 2nd quarter worth about $26,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Aflac by 1,526.7% in the 2nd quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC now owns 244 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 229 shares in the last quarter. AlphaCore Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Aflac in the 1st quarter worth about $28,000. Finally, Hilltop National Bank purchased a new stake in Aflac in the 2nd quarter worth about $32,000. Institutional investors 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.