Barclays Issues Pessimistic Forecast for Aflac (NYSE:AFL) Stock Price

Aflac (NYSE:AFL) had its target price cut by investment analysts at Barclays from $98.00 to $95.00 in a research note issued to investors on Friday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an “underweight” rating on the financial services provider’s stock. Barclays‘s target price would indicate a potential downside of 8.32% from the stock’s previous close.

Other equities analysts also recently issued reports about the stock. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Aflac from $103.00 to $104.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Bank of America upped their target price on Aflac from $115.00 to $124.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Evercore ISI reduced their target price on shares of Aflac from $104.00 to $102.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Piper Sandler reduced their target price on Aflac from $122.00 to $118.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Aflac from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Thursday. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Aflac currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $103.21.

Aflac Price Performance

AFL traded up $0.54 during trading on Friday, hitting $103.62. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 2,761,584 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,804,674. Aflac has a 12 month low of $77.01 and a 12 month high of $115.50. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $104.87 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $106.72. The stock has a market capitalization of $57.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 0.99. The company has a quick ratio of 0.08, a current ratio of 0.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32.

Aflac (NYSE:AFL) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The financial services provider reported $1.56 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.63 by ($0.07). Aflac had a return on equity of 16.34% and a net margin of 22.02%. Sell-side analysts forecast that Aflac will post 7.26 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Aflac

In other Aflac news, EVP Audrey B. Tillman sold 24,744 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.40, for a total transaction 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. This trade represents 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. Insiders own 0.80% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Aflac

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. AMF Tjanstepension AB grew its stake in shares of Aflac by 13.3% during the third quarter. AMF Tjanstepension AB now owns 252,137 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $28,206,000 after buying an additional 29,602 shares during the last quarter. Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC increased its stake in Aflac by 3.7% in the 3rd quarter. Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC now owns 4,373 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $489,000 after purchasing an additional 157 shares during the period. Wedmont Private Capital lifted its position in Aflac by 5.3% in the third quarter. Wedmont Private Capital now owns 7,000 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $783,000 after purchasing an additional 350 shares during the last quarter. Beaumont Financial Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Aflac by 5.3% during the third quarter. Beaumont Financial Advisors LLC now owns 3,683 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $412,000 after purchasing an additional 187 shares during the period. Finally, Virginia Wealth Management Group Inc. boosted its position in Aflac by 27.3% during the 3rd quarter. Virginia Wealth Management Group Inc. now owns 42,595 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $4,762,000 after buying an additional 9,123 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.