Aflac (NYSE:AFL) Price Target Raised to $111.00

Aflac (NYSE:AFL) had its price objective increased by Evercore ISI from $110.00 to $111.00 in a research report report published on Friday morning, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Evercore ISI currently has an underperform rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

Several other research analysts have also recently weighed in on the stock. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of Aflac from $108.00 to $113.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, August 18th. Piper Sandler set a $125.00 target price on shares of Aflac and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 7th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Aflac from $105.00 to $107.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, August 11th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Aflac in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Aflac from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, August 9th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $110.50.

Aflac Stock Up 0.3%

AFL stock opened at $114.06 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $59.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.86, a P/E/G ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 0.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 0.11 and a quick ratio of 0.11. Aflac has a 1-year low of $96.95 and a 1-year high of $115.43. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $108.98 and a 200-day moving average price of $105.71.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 27th. The financial services provider reported $1.07 EPS for the quarter. Aflac had a return on equity of 15.08% and a net margin of 15.32%.The company had revenue of $5.91 billion during the quarter. Equities analysts forecast that Aflac will post 6.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Aflac announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback program on Tuesday, August 12th that permits the company to repurchase 100,000,000 shares. This repurchase authorization permits the financial services provider to reacquire shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Aflac Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, November 19th will be given a $0.58 dividend. This represents a $2.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, November 19th. Aflac’s dividend payout ratio is 30.29%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Aflac

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. True Wealth Design LLC grew its position in Aflac by 188.5% in the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 225 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 147 shares during the last quarter. Mid American Wealth Advisory Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Aflac during the second quarter valued at $26,000. Chilton Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Aflac during the second quarter valued at $26,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Aflac by 1,526.7% in the second quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC now owns 244 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 229 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AlphaCore Capital LLC purchased a new position in Aflac in the 1st quarter worth about $28,000. 67.44% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Aflac

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.