Aflac (NYSE:AFL) Price Target Raised to $105.00 at Wells Fargo & Company

Aflac (NYSE:AFL - Free Report) had its price objective increased by Wells Fargo & Company from $103.00 to $105.00 in a research report sent to investors on Thursday morning,Benzinga reports. Wells Fargo & Company currently has an equal weight rating on the financial services provider's stock.

Other analysts have also issued research reports about the company. UBS Group raised their target price on Aflac from $109.00 to $114.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Barclays set a $98.00 price objective on Aflac and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a report on Monday. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of Aflac from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, May 19th. Raymond James Financial dropped their price target on Aflac from $115.00 to $110.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 29th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on shares of Aflac from $104.00 to $106.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $107.07.

Aflac Trading Up 0.3%

Shares of NYSE:AFL traded up $0.31 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $102.22. The company had a trading volume of 2,123,918 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,155,824. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $103.89 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $105.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.09 and a current ratio of 0.09. The firm has a market cap of $55.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.15 and a beta of 0.81. Aflac has a 1-year low of $90.38 and a 1-year high of $115.50.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The financial services provider reported $1.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.67 by ($0.01). Aflac had a return on equity of 15.55% and a net margin of 21.27%. The company had revenue of $3.40 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.53 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.66 earnings per share. Aflac's revenue for the quarter was down 37.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that Aflac will post 6.88 earnings per share for the current year.

Aflac Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 2nd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 21st were issued a dividend of $0.58 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, May 21st. This represents a $2.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.27%. Aflac's dividend payout ratio is currently 36.25%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Joseph L. Moskowitz sold 1,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $106.79, for a total transaction of $106,790.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 26,096 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,786,791.84. This trade represents a 3.69% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Masatoshi Koide sold 37,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $105.59, for a total value of $3,906,830.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 70,992 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,496,045.28. This represents a 34.26% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 40,750 shares of company stock worth $4,304,295 over the last quarter. 0.90% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Aflac

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Charter Oak Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Aflac by 10.4% in the second quarter. Charter Oak Capital Management LLC now owns 3,079 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $325,000 after purchasing an additional 289 shares in the last quarter. Global Financial Private Client LLC lifted its position in Aflac by 2.7% in the 2nd quarter. Global Financial Private Client LLC now owns 15,720 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,658,000 after buying an additional 412 shares during the last quarter. ARS Wealth Advisors Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Aflac in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $219,000. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC boosted its position in Aflac by 12.2% during the second quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 11,071 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,168,000 after buying an additional 1,208 shares during the period. Finally, NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC bought a new position in Aflac during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $220,000. 67.44% of the stock is currently owned by 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.