Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) Receives $98.73 Average PT from Brokerages

Shares of Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL) have been given an average rating of “Hold” by the fifteen ratings firms that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price target among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $98.73.

A number of analysts have weighed in on AFL shares. Barclays initiated coverage on shares of Aflac in a report on Wednesday, September 4th. They set an “underweight” rating and a $96.00 target price on the stock. Piper Sandler lifted their target price on Aflac from $114.00 to $122.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. Truist Financial increased their price target on Aflac from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Bank of America boosted their price objective on Aflac from $115.00 to $124.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Aflac to $107.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 3rd.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Aflac

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Y.D. More Investments Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Aflac during the 2nd quarter valued at $25,000. Darwin Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Aflac during the third quarter valued at about $34,000. Raelipskie Partnership bought a new position in Aflac during the third quarter valued at about $38,000. Covestor Ltd grew its holdings in Aflac by 41.8% during the third quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 363 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $41,000 after acquiring an additional 107 shares during the period. Finally, Kennebec Savings Bank bought a new stake in Aflac in the third quarter worth about $45,000. Institutional investors own 67.44% of the company’s stock.

Aflac Stock Performance

Shares of AFL stock opened at $104.52 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 0.08 and a current ratio of 0.08. The stock has a market capitalization of $58.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.74, a PEG ratio of 2.09 and a beta of 0.97. Aflac has a one year low of $75.07 and a one year high of $115.50. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $110.14 and its 200-day simple moving average is $102.73.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The financial services provider reported $2.16 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.69 by $0.47. The company had revenue of $2.95 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.30 billion. Aflac had a return on equity of 16.34% and a net margin of 22.02%. Aflac’s quarterly revenue was down 40.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.84 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Aflac will post 7.27 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Aflac Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 3rd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 19th will be issued a $0.58 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 19th. This is a boost from Aflac’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. This represents a $2.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.22%. Aflac’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 30.12%.

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.