Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL – Get Free Report) has been given a consensus recommendation of “Hold” by the twelve brokerages that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, six have issued a hold recommendation, two have issued a buy recommendation and two have assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year price target among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $112.1818.
A number of equities analysts have commented on the stock. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Aflac from $120.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 21st. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of Aflac from $116.00 to $111.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, May 5th. UBS Group reduced their price target on shares of Aflac from $116.00 to $114.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. Barclays decreased their price objective on Aflac from $99.00 to $98.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised Aflac from a “buy (b+)” rating to a “buy (a-)” rating in a research note on Monday, June 15th.
View Our Latest Report on Aflac
Aflac Stock Up 0.9%
Aflac (NYSE:AFL – Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The financial services provider reported $1.75 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.80 by ($0.05). The company had revenue of $4.24 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.20 billion. Aflac had a return on equity of 13.88% and a net margin of 25.60%.The firm’s revenue was up 27.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.66 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Aflac will post 7.08 earnings per share for the current year.
Aflac Dividend Announcement
The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 20th were given a dividend of $0.61 per share. This represents a $2.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, May 20th. Aflac’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 27.70%.
Insider Activity
In other Aflac news, major shareholder Post Holdings Co. Ltd. Japan sold 27,845 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $116.71, for a total value of $3,249,789.95. Following the transaction, the insider owned 50,898,490 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,940,362,767.90. This represents a 0.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Joseph L. Moskowitz sold 12,370 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $116.54, for a total transaction of $1,441,599.80. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 33,310 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,881,947.40. This trade represents a 27.08% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 831,071 shares of company stock worth $96,874,824. 0.80% of the stock is owned by insiders.
Institutional Trading of Aflac
A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Foster Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Aflac by 33.5% in the second quarter. Foster Group Inc. now owns 3,263 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $383,000 after buying an additional 818 shares in the last quarter. JGP Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in Aflac by 0.8% during the 2nd quarter. JGP Wealth Management LLC now owns 81,374 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $9,541,000 after acquiring an additional 616 shares during the period. Balefire LLC boosted its holdings in Aflac by 16.1% during the 2nd quarter. Balefire LLC now owns 2,326 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $273,000 after acquiring an additional 323 shares during the period. Baron Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Aflac by 3.8% in the 2nd quarter. Baron Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,528 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $531,000 after acquiring an additional 167 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in Aflac by 12.3% in the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 18,202 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,134,000 after acquiring an additional 1,987 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors 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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