Aflac (NYSE:AFL) Price Target Raised to $114.00 at UBS Group

Aflac (NYSE:AFL - Free Report) had its target price boosted by UBS Group from $109.00 to $114.00 in a research note published on Wednesday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have a neutral rating on the financial services provider's stock.

Several other research firms have also recently issued reports on AFL. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of Aflac from $98.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday, February 28th. BMO Capital Markets started coverage on shares of Aflac in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. They set a "market perform" rating and a $111.00 price objective for the company. Piper Sandler lifted their target price on Aflac from $118.00 to $124.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Aflac from $94.00 to $96.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price objective on Aflac from $107.00 to $104.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $104.29.

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Aflac Stock Performance

Aflac stock traded down $2.96 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $99.02. The stock had a trading volume of 1,130,752 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,135,055. The company has a current ratio of 0.10, a quick ratio of 0.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. Aflac has a 52-week low of $79.31 and a 52-week high of $115.50. The company has a market capitalization of $54.05 billion, a PE ratio of 10.32, a P/E/G ratio of 3.24 and a beta of 0.81. The firm's fifty day moving average is $106.95 and its two-hundred day moving average is $107.69.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The financial services provider reported $1.56 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.63 by ($0.07). Aflac had a net margin of 28.76% and a return on equity of 16.20%. On average, research analysts forecast that Aflac will post 6.88 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Charles D. Lake II sold 29,802 shares of Aflac stock in a transaction on Monday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $107.29, for a total transaction of $3,197,456.58. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 49,962 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,360,422.98. This trade represents a 37.36 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Joseph L. Moskowitz sold 1,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $107.63, for a total transaction of $107,630.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 25,393 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,733,048.59. The trade was a 3.79 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.90% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Aflac

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its position in shares of Aflac by 75.2% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 776,131 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $88,533,000 after buying an additional 333,083 shares in the last quarter. Roxbury Financial LLC purchased a new stake in Aflac in the fourth quarter worth about $948,000. FMR LLC increased its position in Aflac by 4.0% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,202,104 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $134,395,000 after purchasing an additional 45,745 shares during the period. Willis Investment Counsel increased its position in Aflac by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. Willis Investment Counsel now owns 273,466 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $28,287,000 after purchasing an additional 3,357 shares during the period. Finally, Board of the Pension Protection Fund bought a new stake in shares of Aflac in the 4th quarter valued at about $1,014,000. 67.44% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.