Wells Fargo & Company Has Lowered Expectations for Aflac (NYSE:AFL) Stock Price

Key Points

• Wells Fargo lowered its Aflac price target from $122 to $116 while maintaining an “equal weight” rating, implying only about 0.1% upside from the stock’s prior close.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed but generally cautious: Aflac has an average “Hold” rating and a consensus price target of $115.31, with ratings ranging from Strong Buy to Sell.
• Aflac’s shares traded near $115.89, while the company’s latest quarterly results slightly missed EPS estimates at $1.75 but exceeded revenue expectations with $4.22 billion; institutional investors own 67.44% of the stock.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL - Get Free Report) had its price objective dropped by equities research analysts at Wells Fargo & Company from $122.00 to $116.00 in a research note issued on Monday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an "equal weight" rating on the financial services provider's stock. Wells Fargo & Company's price target would indicate a potential upside of 0.10% from the stock's previous close.

A number of other research analysts have also issued reports on the company. Wolfe Research began coverage on Aflac in a research report on Wednesday, August 19th. They set an "underperform" rating and a $103.00 target price on the stock. UBS Group reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $125.00 price target (up from $124.00) on shares of Aflac in a research note on Tuesday, October 6th. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a "hold" rating and issued a $108.00 price target (up from $100.00) on shares of Aflac in a report on Friday, July 10th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price objective on shares of Aflac from $125.00 to $120.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research report on Friday. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut shares of Aflac from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 15th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $115.31.

Aflac Stock Performance

AFL stock traded up $1.35 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $115.89. 200,704 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,286,233. The firm has a market cap of $58.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.41, a PEG ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 0.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 0.12 and a quick ratio of 0.12. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $117.17 and its 200-day simple moving average is $116.90. Aflac has a 1-year low of $105.43 and a 1-year high of $130.22.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 6th. The financial services provider reported $1.75 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.76 by ($0.01). Aflac had a return on equity of 13.27% and a net margin of 26.91%. The firm had revenue of $4.22 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.11 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.78 EPS. The company's revenue was down 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts expect that Aflac will post 7.04 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Aflac

In other news, major shareholder Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 20,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $118.49, for a total transaction of $2,369,800.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 50,667,690 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,003,614,588.10. The trade was a 0.04% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 465,851 shares of company stock worth $54,213,397. 0.80% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Aflac

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Aflac in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $4,093,787,000. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its holdings in shares of Aflac by 27.8% in the 2nd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 5,201,217 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $609,843,000 after purchasing an additional 1,132,091 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in shares of Aflac by 1.5% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 4,550,855 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $499,216,000 after purchasing an additional 67,650 shares during the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc purchased a new stake in shares of Aflac during the 2nd quarter worth $404,639,000. Finally, Amundi lifted its position in shares of Aflac by 22.6% during the 1st quarter. Amundi now owns 3,268,209 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $358,555,000 after purchasing an additional 603,426 shares during the last quarter. 67.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Aflac Company Profile

Aflac Incorporated NYSE: AFL is an insurance company that provides supplemental health and life insurance products to individuals, employers and groups. Its coverage is designed to help policyholders manage expenses that may not be fully covered by major medical insurance, including costs associated with illness, injury and other qualifying events.

The company's products include accident, cancer, critical illness, hospital indemnity, disability, dental, vision and life insurance. Aflac distributes its policies through workplace benefits programs, independent agents, brokers and other distribution channels.

Founded in 1955 as American Family Life Assurance Company of Columbus, Aflac has its headquarters in Columbus, Georgia.

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