Aflac (NYSE:AFL) Upgraded to "Hold" at StockNews.com

Aflac (NYSE:AFL - Get Free Report) was upgraded by equities research analysts at StockNews.com from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday.

Several other brokerages have also issued reports on AFL. TD Cowen began coverage on shares of Aflac in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. They issued a "hold" rating and a $102.00 price target for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Aflac from $90.00 to $94.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday. Piper Sandler boosted their price target on Aflac from $114.00 to $122.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Evercore ISI reduced their price objective on Aflac from $104.00 to $102.00 and set an "underperform" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Finally, Barclays boosted their target price on Aflac from $96.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a report on Monday. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Aflac currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $99.13.

Aflac Trading Up 0.7 %

AFL stock traded up $0.67 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $103.51. The company had a trading volume of 1,327,664 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,594,153. The business has a 50 day moving average of $106.86 and a 200 day moving average of $104.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 0.08 and a quick ratio of 0.08. The company has a market cap of $57.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.59, a PEG ratio of 2.09 and a beta of 1.00. Aflac has a 52 week low of $75.07 and a 52 week high of $115.50.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The financial services provider reported $2.16 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.69 by $0.47. The company had revenue of $2.95 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.30 billion. Aflac had a return on equity of 16.34% and a net margin of 22.02%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 40.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.84 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Aflac will post 7.27 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Aflac

In other news, EVP Audrey B. Tillman sold 24,744 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $103.40, for a total value of $2,558,529.60. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 222,618 shares in the company, valued at $23,018,701.20. The trade was a 10.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.90% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Aflac

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Aflac by 10,878.5% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 559,903 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $62,597,000 after purchasing an additional 554,803 shares during the last quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund boosted its stake in Aflac by 471.4% during the third quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 600,000 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $67,080,000 after buying an additional 495,000 shares during the period. Truist Financial Corp increased its position in Aflac by 26.6% during the second quarter. Truist Financial Corp now owns 1,929,662 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $172,338,000 after acquiring an additional 405,847 shares during the last quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Aflac in the third quarter valued at $42,290,000. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Aflac by 75.2% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 776,131 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $88,533,000 after acquiring an additional 333,083 shares during the last quarter. 67.44% of the stock is owned by 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.