Aflac (NYSE:AFL) Given New $105.00 Price Target at Morgan Stanley

Aflac (NYSE:AFL) had its price target raised by Morgan Stanley from $98.00 to $105.00 in a research note issued to investors on Friday morning,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an equal weight rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

Several other brokerages have also recently commented on AFL. BMO Capital Markets started coverage on Aflac in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. They set a “market perform” rating and a $111.00 target price on the stock. Barclays decreased their price target on Aflac from $98.00 to $95.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 7th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on Aflac from $104.00 to $102.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price target on Aflac from $107.00 to $104.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Aflac from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $103.36.

Aflac Price Performance

Shares of AFL stock opened at $109.46 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $104.56 and its 200-day moving average is $107.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.08 and a current ratio of 0.10. The stock has a market capitalization of $60.81 billion, a PE ratio of 11.40, a PEG ratio of 3.24 and a beta of 0.99. Aflac has a 52 week low of $78.62 and a 52 week high of $115.50.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The financial services provider reported $1.56 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.63 by ($0.07). Aflac had a return on equity of 16.20% and a net margin of 28.76%. Equities research analysts expect that Aflac will post 6.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Aflac Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 3rd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 19th will be issued a dividend of $0.58 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, February 19th. This represents a $2.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.12%. This is a boost from Aflac’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. Aflac’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 24.17%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Audrey B. Tillman sold 24,744 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $103.40, for a total transaction of $2,558,529.60. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 222,618 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $23,018,701.20. This trade represents a 10.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.90% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Aflac

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Park Square Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Aflac during the fourth quarter worth about $131,000. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH acquired a new stake in shares of Aflac during the fourth quarter worth about $48,081,000. Yoffe Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Aflac during the fourth quarter worth about $465,000. Capital A Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Aflac during the fourth quarter worth about $38,000. Finally, Ameriflex Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Aflac during the fourth quarter worth about $135,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.