Aflac (NYSE:AFL) PT Lowered to $81.00

Aflac (NYSE:AFL - Get Free Report) had its price objective dropped by equities research analysts at Wells Fargo & Company from $83.00 to $81.00 in a note issued to investors on Thursday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an "equal weight" rating on the financial services provider's stock. Wells Fargo & Company's target price indicates a potential upside of 1.71% from the company's previous close.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports on the stock. Piper Sandler lifted their price objective on shares of Aflac from $90.00 to $95.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, April 5th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on shares of Aflac from $61.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a "sell" rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 9th. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of Aflac from $80.00 to $84.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 10th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of Aflac from $85.00 to $80.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, March 1st. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on shares of Aflac from $83.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $81.85.

Aflac Price Performance

Shares of Aflac stock traded down $3.28 on Thursday, hitting $79.64. 3,399,027 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,233,554. The stock has a market capitalization of $45.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.33 and a beta of 0.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 0.06 and a current ratio of 0.06. Aflac has a 52 week low of $64.10 and a 52 week high of $86.26. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $81.74 and a 200 day simple moving average of $81.35.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 1st. The financial services provider reported $1.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.47 by ($0.22). The company had revenue of $3.78 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.44 billion. Aflac had a net margin of 24.92% and a return on equity of 17.59%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.29 EPS. Research analysts expect that Aflac will post 6.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Aflac

In other Aflac news, SVP Albert Riggieri sold 8,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $83.34, for a total transaction of $666,720.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 32,825 shares in the company, valued at $2,735,635.50. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, Director Arthur Reginald Collins sold 3,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $79.73, for a total transaction of $239,190.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 5,592 shares of the company's stock, valued at $445,850.16. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, SVP Albert Riggieri sold 8,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $83.34, for a total transaction of $666,720.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 32,825 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,735,635.50. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 46,493 shares of company stock worth $3,765,706 over the last quarter. Insiders own 0.80% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Aflac

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in AFL. Fortitude Family Office LLC purchased a new stake in Aflac in the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. CoreFirst Bank & Trust purchased a new stake in Aflac in the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Atwood & Palmer Inc. lifted its stake in Aflac by 80.0% in the first quarter. Atwood & Palmer Inc. now owns 315 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 140 shares during the period. Studio Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Aflac in the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Finally, Impact Partnership Wealth LLC lifted its stake in Aflac by 471.4% in the third quarter. Impact Partnership Wealth LLC now owns 400 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 330 shares during the period. 67.44% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.