JPMorgan Chase & Co. Raises Aflac (NYSE:AFL) Price Target to $83.00

Aflac (NYSE:AFL) had its target price hoisted by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $80.00 to $83.00 in a research report released on Tuesday morning, Benzinga reports. They currently have a neutral rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued research reports about the company. StockNews.com raised Aflac from a sell rating to a hold rating in a research note on Friday, May 3rd. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price target on Aflac from $84.00 to $83.00 and set a hold rating for the company in a research note on Friday, June 28th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on Aflac from $83.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock a market perform rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Aflac from $80.00 to $84.00 and gave the stock an equal weight rating in a research report on Monday, April 15th. Finally, Piper Sandler upped their target price on Aflac from $95.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research report on Friday, June 28th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of Hold and an average target price of $83.69.

Aflac Price Performance

Shares of AFL opened at $89.09 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $50.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.83, a P/E/G ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 0.95. Aflac has a fifty-two week low of $69.00 and a fifty-two week high of $91.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a current ratio of 0.08 and a quick ratio of 0.08. The business’s 50-day moving average is $87.35 and its 200-day moving average is $83.97.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL) last issued its earnings results on Monday, May 6th. The financial services provider reported $1.66 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.58 by $0.08. The company had revenue of $5.44 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.09 billion. Aflac had a return on equity of 16.88% and a net margin of 27.67%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 13.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.55 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Aflac will post 6.46 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Aflac Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 3rd. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 22nd were paid a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.24%. This is a positive change from Aflac’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.42. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, May 21st. Aflac’s dividend payout ratio is presently 22.08%.

Insider Activity at Aflac

In other Aflac news, Director Joseph L. Moskowitz sold 600 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $84.84, for a total transaction of $50,904.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 27,550 shares in the company, valued at $2,337,342. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, Director Charles D. Lake II sold 22,378 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $87.47, for a total value of $1,957,403.66. Following the transaction, the director now owns 61,522 shares in the company, valued at $5,381,329.34. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Joseph L. Moskowitz sold 600 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $84.84, for a total value of $50,904.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 27,550 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,337,342. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.80% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Aflac

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Aflac by 78.7% during the third quarter. Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC now owns 25,945 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,991,000 after buying an additional 11,428 shares during the last quarter. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Aflac during the third quarter worth about $346,000. Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its position in shares of Aflac by 0.7% during the third quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 896,897 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $68,850,000 after purchasing an additional 6,102 shares during the period. Lido Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Aflac by 108.5% during the third quarter. Lido Advisors LLC now owns 128,605 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $9,870,000 after purchasing an additional 66,920 shares during the period. Finally, Legacy Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Aflac by 2.8% during the third quarter. Legacy Advisors LLC now owns 5,213 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $400,000 after purchasing an additional 144 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 67.44% of the company’s stock.

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.