Aflac (NYSE:AFL) Upgraded to Hold at Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen upgraded Aflac from “sell” to “hold”, contributing to an overall analyst consensus that also sits at Hold with a target price of about $111.36.
• Aflac’s stock was trading at $112.98, near its 50-day and 200-day moving averages, with a market cap of $57.51 billion and a relatively low beta of 0.62.
• The company’s latest quarter showed EPS of $1.75, missing estimates by $0.05, while revenue of $4.24 billion topped expectations and rose 27.9% year over year.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL - Get Free Report) was upgraded by investment analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note issued to investors on Saturday.

Other research analysts have also issued research reports about the company. Piper Sandler reduced their price objective on Aflac from $130.00 to $125.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Mizuho set a $104.00 price objective on Aflac in a research report on Monday. Weiss Ratings cut Aflac from a "buy (b)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on Aflac from $116.00 to $111.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Barclays set a $99.00 price target on Aflac and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $111.36.

Aflac Trading Down 0.5%

NYSE:AFL opened at $112.98 on Friday. Aflac has a 12-month low of $96.95 and a 12-month high of $119.32. The firm has a market capitalization of $57.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.82, a P/E/G ratio of 1.98 and a beta of 0.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a current ratio of 0.11 and a quick ratio of 0.11. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $111.42 and a 200 day simple moving average of $110.96.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The financial services provider reported $1.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.80 by ($0.05). Aflac had a net margin of 25.60% and a return on equity of 13.88%. The company had revenue of $4.24 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.20 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.66 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 27.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts predict that Aflac will post 7.12 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, major shareholder Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 166,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $112.38, for a total value of $18,655,080.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 51,723,100 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,812,641,978. This represents a 0.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold a total of 572,875 shares of company stock valued at $63,542,458 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.80% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Aflac

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Whipplewood Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Aflac in the first quarter valued at $25,000. Quarry LP acquired a new stake in shares of Aflac in the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. Nalls Sherbakoff Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Aflac in the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. Evergreen Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Aflac in the first quarter valued at $29,000. Finally, Navalign LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Aflac in the fourth quarter valued at $32,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 67.44% of the company's stock.

About Aflac

Aflac Incorporated (American Family Life Assurance Company of Columbus) is a provider of supplemental insurance products designed to help policyholders manage out-of-pocket health care and living expenses. The company underwrites a range of individual and group policies that typically pay cash benefits directly to insureds when covered events occur, enabling greater financial flexibility for medical treatment, hospital stays, critical illness, and related costs. Aflac's product mix includes supplemental health insurance, life insurance and other specialty coverages intended to complement primary medical plans.

Founded in the mid-20th century and headquartered in Columbus, Georgia, Aflac distributes its products through a combination of employer-sponsored programs, independent brokers and agents, and direct marketing.

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