Aflac (NYSE:AFL) Reaches New 52-Week High at $91.20

Aflac Incorporated (NYSE:AFL - Get Free Report)'s share price hit a new 52-week high on Thursday . The company traded as high as $91.20 and last traded at $91.15, with a volume of 101341 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $90.21.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AFL has been the topic of several research reports. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Aflac from $81.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, May 10th. StockNews.com raised Aflac from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, May 3rd. Truist Financial boosted their price target on shares of Aflac from $80.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, May 3rd. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price target on shares of Aflac from $84.00 to $83.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, June 28th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Aflac from $80.00 to $83.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 2nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $85.15.

Aflac Stock Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 0.08, a current ratio of 0.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $87.87 and a 200 day moving average price of $84.25. The stock has a market cap of $52.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.20, a PEG ratio of 2.18 and a beta of 0.95.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 6th. The financial services provider reported $1.66 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.58 by $0.08. Aflac had a return on equity of 16.88% and a net margin of 27.67%. The company had revenue of $5.44 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.09 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.55 EPS. Aflac's quarterly revenue was up 13.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Aflac Incorporated will post 6.46 EPS for the current year.

Aflac Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 3rd. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 22nd were issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. 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. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.16%. Aflac's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 22.08%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

Institutional Trading of Aflac

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Harbour Investments Inc. grew its stake in Aflac by 19.0% in the third quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 6,064 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $465,000 after purchasing an additional 970 shares during the last quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board raised its stake in shares of Aflac by 3.7% during the 3rd quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 129,373 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $9,929,000 after acquiring an additional 4,656 shares in the last quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in Aflac by 4.6% during the third quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 4,111 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $316,000 after acquiring an additional 181 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its stake in Aflac by 17.2% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 147,344 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $11,309,000 after acquiring an additional 21,642 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Headinvest LLC purchased a new position in Aflac in the third quarter worth $164,000. Institutional investors own 67.44% of the company's stock.

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.